Art. VIII.—The History of Louisiana, from the earliest period. By François-Xavier Martin: 2 vols. 8vo. New-Orleans: Lyman and Beardslee. 1827. (continued 2)

The counsellors differed in their opinions, diametrically, each giving his reasons at large. The first consul decided the question immediately; he promptly declared, that

"Irresolution and deliberation are no longer in season. I renounce Louisiana. It is not only New-Orleans that I will cede, it is the whole colony without any reservation. I know the price of what I abandon, and I have sufficiently proved the importance that I attach to this province, since my first diplomatic act with Spain had for its object the recovery of it. I renounce it with the greatest regret. To attempt obstinately to retain it would be folly. I direct you to negotiate this affair with the envoys of the United States. Do not even await the arrival of Mr. Monroe: have an interview this very day with Mr. Livingston."

We hope and believe that one of the predictions of this luminous mind will not be fulfilled, although we have lately seen some appearances of its accomplishment.

"Perhaps it will also be objected to me, that the Americans may be found too powerful for Europe in two or three centuries: but my foresight does not embrace such remote fears. Besides, we may hereafter expect rivalries among the members of the Union. The confederations, that are called perpetual, only last till one of the contracting parties finds it to its interest to break them, and it is to prevent the danger, to which the colossal power of England exposes us, that I would provide a remedy."

"The conferences began the same day between Mr. Livingston and M. Barbé Marbois, to whom the first consul confided the negotiation." Pending the preliminary discussions, Mr. Monroe arrived at Paris; but even then Mr. Livingston despaired of success, and said to Mr. Monroe, "I wish that the resolution offered by Mr. Ross in the senate had been adopted. Only force can give us New-Orleans; we must employ force; let us first get possession of the country and negotiate afterwards." Mr. Livingston, however, was happily mistaken. "The first difficulties," says M. Marbois, "were smoothed by a circumstance which is rarely met with in congresses and diplomatic conferences. The plenipotentiaries having been long acquainted, were disposed to treat each other with confidence." The negotiation, under such auspices, proceeded rapidly, but not without some distrust on our part.

"Mr. Monroe, still affected by the distrust of his colleague, did not hear without surprise the first overtures that were frankly made by M. de Marbois. Instead of the cession of a town and its inconsiderable territory, a vast portion of America was in some sort offered to the United States. They only asked for the mere right of navigating the Mississippi, and their sovereignty was about to be extended over the largest rivers of the world. They passed over an interior frontier to carry their limits to the great Pacific ocean."

The termination of this important negotiation was as speedy and satisfactory, as it has been and will be important in its consequences. M. Marbois truly observes, "the cession of Louisiana was a certain guarantee of the future greatness of the United States; and opposed an insurmountable obstacle to any design formed by the English of becoming predominant in America." In relation to the stipulations in the treaty, that the inhabitants should be incorporated in the Union, and, in due time, be admitted as a state, &c. M. Marbois records.

"The first consul, left to his natural disposition, was always inclined to an elevated and generous justice. He himself prepared the article which has been just recited. The words which he employed on the occasion are recorded in the journal of the negotiation, and deserve to be preserved. 'Let the Louisianians know that we separate ourselves from them with regret; that we stipulate in their favour every thing that they can desire, and let them hereafter, happy in their independence, recollect that they have been Frenchmen, and that France, in ceding them, has secured for them advantages which they could not have obtained from a European power, however paternal it might have been. Let them retain for us sentiments of affection; and may their common origin, descent, language, and customs, perpetuate the friendship.'"

The arrangement being completed, M. Marbois says—"the following words sufficiently acquaint us with the reflections which then influenced the first consul. This accession of territory, said he, strengthens forever the power of the United States, and I have just given to England a maritime rival, that will sooner or later humble her pride."

We return to the History of Judge Martin, who describes the ceremonies of delivering the colony to the United States. Some citizens of the United States waved their hats, but "no emotion was manifested by any other part of the crowd. The colonists did not appear conscious that they were reaching the Latium sedes ubi fata quietas ostendunt."

We pass on to the year 1806, when the celebrated plot of Aaron Burr is introduced. The president had received information of it, but not at first with such certainty as warranted any steps to be taken against the accused. General Wilkinson, then commanding in the west, afterwards made communications to the president, "involving men distinguished for integrity and patriotism; men of talents, honoured by the confidence of the government, in the flagitious plot." The designs of Burr and his associates were fully developed on his trial, and we need not repeat them here; but the proceedings of General Wilkinson are not so generally understood, and it is well that they should be. Nobody can be better qualified than our historian to give the information, nor to obtain implicit belief of all he narrates. We shall here see again that the old practice of shipping off obnoxious individuals was resorted to by a military commander; as if there was something in the climate of New-Orleans to excite men in power to this mode of punishment or revenge. We cannot present these transactions better than in the language of our author.

"On Sunday, the fourteenth, Dr. Erick Bollman was arrested by order of Wilkinson, and hurried to a secret place of confinement, and on the evening of the following day application was made on his behalf, for a writ of habeas corpus, to Sprigg, one of the territorial judges, who declined acting, till he could consult Mathews, who could not then be found. On the sixteenth, the writ was obtained from the superior court; but Bollman was, in the meanwhile, put on board of a vessel and sent down the river. On the same day, application was made to Workman, the judge of the county of Orleans, for a writ of habeas corpus, in favour of Ogden and Swartwout, who had been arrested a few days before, by order of Wilkinson, at Fort Adams, and were on board of a bomb ketch of the United States lying before the city. Workman immediately granted the writ, and called on Claiborne to inquire whether he had assented to Wilkinson's proceedings: Claiborne replied he had consented to the arrest of Bollman, and his mind was not made up as to the propriety of that of Ogden and Swartwout. Workman then expatiated on the illegality and evil tendency of such measures, beseeching Claiborne not to permit them, but to use his own authority, as the constitutional guardian of his fellow-citizens, to protect them; but he was answered that the executive had no authority to liberate those persons, and it was for the judiciary to do it, if they thought fit. Workman added, that he had heard that Wilkinson intended to ship off his prisoners, and if this was permitted, writs of habeas corpus would prove nugatory.

"From the alarm and terror prevalent in the city, the deputy sheriff could procure no boat to take him on board of the ketch, on the day the writ issued. This circumstance was made known early on the next morning, to Workman, who thereupon directed the deputy sheriff to procure a boat by the offer of a considerable sum of money, for the payment of which he undertook the county would be responsible. The writ was served soon afterwards, and returned at five in the evening by Commodore Shaw, and the commanding officer of the ketch, Lieutenant Jones; Swartwout had been taken from the ketch before the service of the writ. Ogden was produced and discharged, as his detention was justified on the order of Wilkinson only.

"On the eighteenth of December, Wilkinson returned the writ of habeas corpus into the superior court, stating that, as commander in chief of the army of the United States, he took on himself all responsibility for the arrest of Erick Bollman, charged with misprison of treason against the government of the United States, and he had adopted measures for his safe delivery to the government of the United States: that it was after several conversations with the governor and one of the judges of the territory, that he had hazarded this step for the national safety, menaced to its basis by a lawless band of traitors, associated under Aaron Burr, whose accomplices were extended from New-York to New-Orleans: that no man held in higher reverence the civil authorities of his country, and it was to maintain and perpetuate the holy attributes of the constitution, against the uplifted arm of violence, that he had interposed the force of arms in a moment of the utmost peril, to seize upon Bollman, as he should upon all others, without regard to standing or station, against whom any proof might arise of a participation in the lawless combination.

"This return was, afterwards, amended, by an averment that, at the time of the service of the writ, Bollman was not in the possession or power of the person to whom it was addressed.

"On the following day Ogden was arrested a second time by the commanding officer of a troop of cavalry of the militia of the territory, in the service of the United States, by whom Alexander was also taken in custody; on the application of Livingston, Workman issued writs of habeas corpus for both prisoners.

"Instead of a return, Wilkinson sent a written message to Workman, begging him to accept his return to the superior court, as applicable to the two traitors, who were the subjects of his writs. On this, Livingston procured from the court, a rule that Wilkinson make a further and more explicit return to the writs, or show cause why an attachment should not issue against him.

"Workman now called again on Claiborne, and repeated his observations, and recommended, that Wilkinson should be opposed by force of arms. He stated, that the violent measures of that officer had produced great discontent, alarm, and agitation, in the public mind; and, unless such proceeding were effectually opposed, all confidence in government would be at an end. He urged Claiborne to revoke the order, by which he had placed the Orleans volunteers under Wilkinson's command, and to call out and arm the rest of the militia force, as soon as possible. He stated it as his opinion, that the army would not oppose the civil power, when constitutionally brought forth, or that, if they did, the governor might soon have men enough to render the opposition ineffectual. He added, that, from the laudable conduct of Commodore Shaw and Lieutenant Jones, respecting Ogden, he not only did not apprehend any resistance to the civil authority from the navy, but thought they might be relied on. Similar representations were made to Claiborne by Hall and Mathews; but they were unavailing.

"On the twenty-sixth, Wilkinson made a second return to the writ of habeas corpus, stating that the body of neither of the prisoners was in his possession or control. On this, Livingston moved for process of attachment.

"Workman now made an official communication to Claiborne. He began by observing, that the late extraordinary events, which had taken place within the territory, had led to a circumstance, which authorized the renewal, in a formal manner, of the request he had so frequently urged in conversation, that the executive would make use of the constitutional force placed under his command, to maintain the laws, and protect his fellow-citizens against the unexampled tyranny exercised over them.

"He added, it was notorious that the commander in chief of the military forces had, by his own authority, arrested several citizens for civil offences, and had avowed on record, that he had adopted measures to send them out of the territory, openly declaring his determination to usurp the functions of the judiciary, by making himself the only judge of the guilt of the persons he suspected, and asserting in the same manner, and as yet without contradiction, that his measures were taken, after several consultations with the governor.

"He proceeded to state, that writs of habeas corpus had been issued from the court of the county of New-Orleans: on one of them, Ogden had been brought up and discharged, but he had been, however, again arrested, by order of the general, together with an officer of the court, who had aided professionally in procuring his release. The general had, in his return to a subsequent writ, issued on his behalf, referred the court to a return made by him to a former writ of the superior court, and in the further return which he had been ordered to make, he had declared that neither of the prisoners was in his power, possession, or custody; but he had not averred what was requisite, in order to exempt him from the penalty of a contempt of court, that these persons were not in his power, possession, or custody, at the time when the writs were served, and, in consequence of the deficiency, the court had been moved for an attachment.

"The judge remarked, that although a common case would not require the step he was taking, yet, he deemed it his duty, before any decisive measure was pursued against a man, who had all the regular force, and in pursuance of the governor's public orders, a great part of that of the territory, at his disposal, to ask whether the executive had the ability to enforce the decrees of the court of the county, and if he had, whether he would deem it expedient to do it, in the present instance, or whether the allegation by which he supported these violent measures was well founded?

"Not only the conduct and power of Wilkinson, said the judge, but various other circumstances, peculiar to our present situation, the alarm excited in the public mind, the description and character of a large part of the population of the country, might render it dangerous, in the highest degree, to adopt the measure usual in ordinary cases, of calling to the aid of the sheriff, the posse comitatus, unless it were done with the assurance of being supported by the governor in an efficient manner.

"The letter concluded by requesting a precise and speedy answer to the preceding inquiries, and an assurance that, if certain of the governor's support, the judge should forthwith punish, as the law directs, the contempt offered to his court: on the other hand, should the governor not think it practicable or proper to afford his aid, the court and its officers would no longer remain exposed to the contempt or insults of a man, whom they were unable to punish or resist.

"The legislature met on the twelfth of January. Two days after, General Adair arrived in the city, from Tennessee, and reported he had left Burr at Nashville, on the twenty-second of December, with two flat boats, destined for New-Orleans. In the afternoon of the day of Adair's arrival, the hotel at which he had stopped was invested by one hundred and twenty men, under Lieutenant Colonel Kingsbury, accompanied by one of Wilkinson's aids. Adair was dragged from the dining table, and conducted to head quarters, where he was put in confinement. They beat to arms through the streets; the battalion of the volunteers of Orleans, and a part of the regular troops, paraded through the city, and Workman, Kerr, and Bradford, were arrested and confined. Wilkinson ordered the latter to be released, and the two former were liberated on the following day, on a writ of habeas corpus, issued by the district judge of the United States. Adair was secreted until an opportunity offered to ship him away."

We approach a very interesting portion of our history, in which certain transactions are detailed, with great precision, for some of which General Jackson has obtained, and deserved, a brilliant crown of military glory, and for others has been visited with deep and indignant reproaches; whether justly or not, the reader will decide by the facts of the case.

On the 2d of December 1814, General Jackson reached New-Orleans; and on the next day commenced his operations to put the city in a state of defence against the attack expected to be made upon it. A large naval force of the enemy was off the port of Pensacola; and it was understood that New-Orleans was their object. The force in New-Orleans consisted of seven hundred men of the United States regiments; one thousand state militia, and some sailors and marines. Reinforcements from Tennessee and Kentucky were looked for. It is not to our purpose, and must be unnecessary, to recapitulate all the interesting occurrences which took place at this alarming crisis; all evincing the gallantry and patriotism of our countrymen. In this early stage of the contest, our author, with great warmth and strong testimony, asserts the unshaken fidelity and active efficient attachment of the people of New-Orleans to the government of the United States, and repels with an honest indignation the charges of disaffection and treason which were on various occasions made upon them, to justify the tyrannical violence of certain proceedings against them. He says, "although the population of New-Orleans was composed of individuals of different nations, it was as patriotic as that of any city in the Union." We believe him most sincerely; and who does not? Can any just and candid man doubt it after a sober perusal of his details, having a particular relation to this question? To suppose that they had any sympathies with the invading foe; any treasonable correspondence with them; any desire for their success; is to calumniate a people as deeply and dearly interested in our independence, as devotedly attached to our institutions, as any portion of the republic. We therefore not only excuse, but applaud, the feelings of resentment with which Judge Martin, himself one of the people of Louisiana, and honoured by her confidence, meets every assertion and insinuation of treachery or disaffection cast upon her. He assures us, that "Claiborne (the governor) was sincerely attached to the government of his country, and the legislature was prepared to call forth and place at Jackson's disposal, all the resources of the state." Again he says, "If some, in the beginning, doubted whether General Jackson's military experience had been of a kind to fit him for this service, his conduct very soon dispelled the doubt."

"The want of an able military chief was sensibly felt, and notwithstanding any division of sentiment on any other subject, the inclination was universal to support Jackson, and he had been hailed on his arrival by all. There were some, indeed, who conceived that the crisis demanded a general of some experience in ordinary warfare; that one whose military career had begun with the current year, and who had never met with any but an Indian force, was ill calculated to meet the warlike enemy who threatened; but all were willing to make a virtue of necessity, and to take their wishes for their opinions, and manifested an unbounded confidence in him. All united in demonstrations of respect and reliance, and every one was ready to give him his support. His immediate and incessant attention to the defence of the country, the care he took to visit every vulnerable point, his unremitted vigilance, and the strict discipline enforced, soon convinced all that he was the man the occasion demanded."

The general had, however, imbibed strong prejudices against the inhabitants of the city, infused into him by bad advisers who surrounded him.

"Unfortunately he had been surrounded, from the moment of his arrival, by persons from the ranks of the opposition to Claiborne, Hall, and the state government, and it was soon discovered that he had become impressed with the idea, that a great part of the population of Louisiana was disaffected, and the city full of traitors and spies. It appears such were his sentiments as early as the 8th of September; for in a letter of Claiborne, which he since published, the governor joins in the opinion, and writes to him, 'I think with you, that our country is full of spies and traitors.'"

The interest we feel to vindicate the people of Louisiana from the suspicions that were long entertained of their loyalty, and may not be yet wholly eradicated, induces us to trouble our readers with further extracts on this subject.

"The legislature was in session, since the beginning of the preceding month. We have seen that Claiborne, at the opening of the session, had offered them his congratulations on the alacrity with which the call of the United States for a body of militia had been met, which, with the detail of the proceedings of that body, is the best refutation of the charges which have been urged against them. It will show, that in attachment to the Union, in zeal for the defence of the country, in liberality in furnishing the means of it, and in ministering to the wants of their brave fellow-citizens who came down to assist them in repelling the foe, the general assembly of Louisiana does not suffer by a comparison of its conduct with that of any legislative body in the United States. The assertion, that any member of it entertained the silly opinion, that a capitulation, if any became necessary, was to be brought about or effected by the agency of the houses, any more than by that of a court of justice, or the city council of New-Orleans, is absolutely groundless."

A proposition was made by the governor to the legislature, to suspend the writ of habeas corpus, in order that men might be pressed for the service, particularly naval, of the United States: the legislature knew it to be a dangerous measure, and thought it unnecessary.

"Coming from every part of the state, the representatives had witnessed the universal alacrity with which Jackson's requisitions for a quota of the militia of the state had been complied with; they knew their constituents could be depended on; they knew that Jackson, Claiborne, and many of the military, were incessantly talking of sedition, disaffection, and treason; but better acquainted with the people of Louisiana, than those who were vociferating against it, they were conscious, that no state was more free from sedition, disaffection, and treason, than their own; they thought the state should not outlaw her citizens, when they were rushing to repel the enemy. They dreaded the return of those days, when Wilkinson filled New-Orleans with terror and dismay, arresting and transporting whom he pleased. They recollected that in 1806 Jefferson had made application to congress for a suspension of the writ of habeas corpus, but that the recommendation of the president was not deemed sufficient to induce the legislature of the Union to suspend it: that of Claiborne, as far as it concerned Jackson, was not therefore acted on. The members had determined not to adjourn during the invasion, and thought they would suspend the writ when they deemed the times required it, but not till then."

That the refusal to put an uncontrouled power over the persons of the citizens, to withdraw from them the protection of the law, did not proceed from an unwillingness to obtain for the service the force required, is made manifest by the substitute adopted. "A sum of five thousand dollars was placed at the disposal of the commodore, to be expended in bounties; and, to remove the opportunity of seamen being tempted to decline entering the service of the United States, by the hope of employment on board of merchant vessels, an embargo was passed."

The general does not seem to have been satisfied with the reasons of the legislature for denying the power he desired, nor with their substitute for it.

"The suspension of the writ of habeas corpus, and adjournment of the houses, were measures which Jackson anxiously desired. There was a great inclination in the members of both houses to gratify him, in every instance in which they could do it with safety: in these two only, they were of opinion it would be unsafe to adopt his views."

General Carroll, with a brigade of Tennessee militia, arrived on the 19th, and the legislature were indefatigable in preparing for the expected attack.

"At this period the forces at New-Orleans amounted to between six and seven thousand men. Every individual exempted from militia duty on account of age, had joined one of the companies of veterans, which had been formed for the preservation of order. Every class of society was animated with the most ardent zeal; the young, the old, women, children, all breathed defiance to the enemy, firmly disposed to oppose to the utmost the threatened invasion. There were in the city a very great number of French subjects, who from their national character could not have been compelled to perform military duty; these men, however, with hardly any exception, volunteered their services. The Chevalier Tousard, the Consul of France, who had distinguished himself, and had lost an arm in the service of the United States, during the revolutionary war, lamenting that the neutrality of his nation did not allow him to lead his countrymen in New-Orleans to the field, encouraged them to flock to Jackson's standard. The people were preparing for battle as cheerfully as if for a party of pleasure: the streets resounded with martial airs: the several corps of militia were constantly exercising, from morning to night: every bosom glowed with the feelings of national honour: every thing showed nothing was to be apprehended from disaffection, disloyalty, or treason."

On the 21st, the enemy landed with a strong force, and a proud one, confident of an easy victory. They looked upon all the wealth and comforts of New-Orleans as already their own. The battle that shortly after ensued, sought for and won by the Americans, can never be forgotten. The promptitude, decision, and skill, with which General Jackson took his measures; the bravery with which they were executed; and the glorious success which crowned the bold attack upon an enemy greatly superior in numbers, discipline, and experience, will be ranked among the most gallant achievements of military history. Our author assures us that the invading army "had a force of very near five thousand men; that which opposed him was not above two thousand." Preparations against the grand attack upon the city continued with unceasing vigilance and labour. The members of the legislature—the suspected legislature—old and young, joined some of the military corps; but lest their legislative aid might also be required, they continued their sessions; when a most extraordinary proceeding occurred.

"Every day, towards noon, three or four of the members of each house, who served among the veterans or on the committees, attended in their respective halls to effect an adjournment, in order that, if any circumstance rendered the aid of the legislature necessary, it might be instantly afforded. On going for this purpose to the government house, Skipwith, the speaker of the senate, and two of its members, found a sentinel on the staircase, who, presenting his bayonet, forbade them to enter the senate chamber. They quietly retired, and proceeded to the hall of the sessions of the city council, where an adjournment took place. The members of the other house, who attended for the same purpose, were likewise prevented from entering its hall, and acted like those of the senate."

A committee was appointed to wait upon the general, and inquire into the reasons of these violent measures against the legislature. The general gave his reasons, which, in short, were, that he had received information "that the assembly were about to give up the country to the enemy." The author goes into a full examination of this charge; and the refutation of it is entirely satisfactory.

The spirit of defence even entered the walls of the prisons.

"A number of debtors, who had taken the benefit of the acts establishing the prison bounds, were anxious to join in the defence of the city, but were apprehensive of exposing their sureties. On this being represented to the legislature, an act was passed, extending the prison bounds, until the first of May following, so as to include Jackson's line."

The last effort of the invader was made by the battle of the 8th of January, and is described in our book with much effect. Long may it be read and remembered with an unextinguishable glow of pride and patriotism! The contest was ended; the foe hastily abandoned our shores, on which they left nothing but memorials of their defeat and shame, in the melancholy monuments of their slaughtered companions. Our author concludes his narrative of these eventful days, with an eloquent tribute to the general, by whose indefatigable activity and fearless gallantry a rich and populous city was saved.

"If the vigilance, the activity, and the intrepidity of the general had been conspicuous during the whole period of the invasion, his prudence, moderation, and self-denial, on the departure of the enemy, deserves no less commendation and admiration. An opportunity was then presented to him of acquiring laurels by a pursuit, which few, elated as he must have been by success, could have resisted. But, he nobly reflected that those who fled from him were mercenaries—those who surrounded his standard, his fellow-citizens, almost universally fathers of families;—sound policy, to use his own expressions, neither required nor authorized him to expose the lives of his companions in arms, in a useless conflict. He thought the lives of ten British soldiers would not requite the loss of one of his men. He had not saved New-Orleans to sacrifice its inhabitants."

On his return to the city, he was greeted with "tears of gratitude"—why were they not perpetual? His cruel suspicions; his unjust accusations of treason and disaffection, were forgotten or forgiven, and no sentiment remained in the hearts of the people of Louisiana, but admiration of his conduct in the day of trial, and gratitude for his services; why was not this perpetual? We shall see.

"By a communication of the 13th of January, from Admiral Cochrane, Jackson was informed that the Admiral had just received a bulletin from Jamaica, (a copy of which was enclosed) proclaiming that a treaty of peace had been signed by the respective plenipotentiaries of Great Britain and the United States, at Ghent, on the 24th of December. The despatch did not arrive till the 21st, by way of Balize; but the intelligence had been brought to the city by one of Jackson's aids, who had returned from the British fleet with a flag of truce." As in canvassing the subsequent proceedings of the General at New-Orleans, his advocates have pretended that he had no information of the peace to which he ought to have trusted, that point must not be overlooked in our inquiries. What was the evidence at this period, that is, on the 21st of January? A communication directly addressed to him, by and under the name of the British Admiral, with every sanction that honour and good faith could give it. This communication, so vouched, was accompanied by a copy of a bulletin which the Admiral declared he had just received from Jamaica, too distant to have been fabricated there for the occasion; and all this was confirmed by the intelligence brought by one of the General's aids from the fleet. Is there any degree of military caution that would have doubted the truth of this information, in the manner and for the purposes for which the doubts, real or pretended, were used by the General? We will not say that he should, on such intelligence, have exposed himself to an attack from the enemy; that he should have disbanded his army, or thrown by his guards and defence, as if the intelligence had been authentic from his own government; but, assuredly there was that in the information he received, on which a strong reliance might reasonably and safely have been placed; at least enough to have suspended military operations against his own fellow-citizens. He must have imputed fraud, falsehood, and forgery, to an officer, who, although an enemy, was entitled to a more just and respectful consideration. No usage of modern warfare would have justified such practices, and therefore they ought not to have been presumed. With no disposition to "set down aught in malice" against the General, we cannot refrain from saying, that, whatever he may have found it convenient to believe or disbelieve, to justify the extravagance of ungovernable passions inflamed by evil counsellors, in his moments of sober thoughts, if any such happened to him, he could not reject the testimony before him, of the termination of the war. He certainly, at least, thought it worthy to be announced to the people, although he "forewarned them from being thrown into security by hopes that might be delusive." This was a prudent caution, and sufficient. "On the 22d, the gladsome tidings were confirmed, and a Gazette of Charleston was received, announcing the ratification of the Treaty by the Prince Regent." We assume then, that on the 22d of January, such intelligence was received of the Peace at New-Orleans, as might, and should have satisfied the most sceptical military caution, of its truth, at least to the extent required for our examination into the General's subsequent conduct.

It seems that a discontent had arisen, which led to serious consequences. The French subjects resident at New-Orleans, "had flocked round Jackson's standard, determined to leave it with the necessity that called them to it, and not till then." They endured much privation, toil, and danger; their families also were in a state of suffering, to whose relief they were anxious to return after the enemy had left the state. A few solicited a discharge; but the General insisted on their being retained. Some then demanded of the French consul, certificates of their national character, which were presented to the General, who countersigned them, and the bearers were permitted to return home. So many, however, applied for this indulgence, that the General believed that the consul too easily granted his certificates, "and considering a compliance with his duty, as evidence of his adhesion to the enemy, ordered him out of the city."

We now come to a false step, of more importance, made by the General, to which he was led by that which has overthrown many men placed in elevated stations. It has been the misfortune and ruin of great men who were high; and, more frequently so, of high men who were not great; weak and evil counsellors.

"Yielding to the advice of many around him, who were constantly filling his ears with their clamours about the disloyalty, disaffection, and treason of the people of Louisiana, and particularly the state officers and the people of French origin, Jackson, on the last day of February, issued a general order, commanding all French subjects, possessed of a certificate of their national character, subscribed by the consul of France, and countersigned by the commanding general, to retire into the interior, to a distance above Baton Rouge:—a measure, which was stated to have been rendered indispensable by the frequent applications for discharges. The names were directed to be taken of all persons of this description, remaining in the city, after the expiration of three days.

"Time has shown this to have been a most unfortunate step; and those by whose suggestions it was taken, soon found themselves unable to avert from the general the consequences to which it exposed him. The people against whom it was directed were loyal—many of them had bled, all had toiled and suffered in the defence of the state. Need, in many instances, improvidence in several, had induced the families of these people to part with the furniture of their houses to supply those immediate wants, which the absence of the head of the family occasioned. No exception, no distinction was made. The sympathetic feelings of every class of inhabitants were enlisted in favour of these men; they lacked the means of sustaining themselves on the way, and must have been compelled, on their arrival at Baton Rouge, then a very insignificant village, to throw themselves on the charity of the inhabitants. Another consideration rendered the departure of these men an evil to be dreaded. The apprehension of the return of the enemy was represented, as having had much weight with Jackson in issuing his order. Their past conduct was a sure pledge that, in case of need, their services would again be re-offered; there were among them a number of experienced artillery-men; a description of soldiers, which was not easily to be found among the brave who had come down from Kentucky, or Tennessee, or even in the army of the United States. These considerations induced several respectable citizens to wait on Jackson, for the purpose of endeavouring to induce him to reconsider a determination, which was viewed as productive of flagrant injustice and injury to those against whom it was directed, without any possible advantage, and probably very detrimental, to those for whose benefit it was intended."

To quiet and console this distressed and injured people under this wanton decree of military power; this cruel exile; it was recommended to them to submit without resistance to the order.

"They were assured, that the laws of the country would protect them, and punish, even in a successful general, a violation of the rights of, or a wanton injury to, the meanest individual, citizen or alien. They were referred to the case of Wilkinson, against whom an independent jury of the Mississippi territory had given a verdict in favour of Adair, who had been illegally arrested and transported, during the winter of 1806."

It must be recollected, that this order was issued and executed on the last day of February, six weeks after the Charleston Gazette had announced at New-Orleans, the ratification of the treaty of peace, as above stated. During all this period, there had not been an appearance of the enemy, or a movement by them, or the slightest occurrence or rumour, to raise a doubt of the truth of this intelligence. Not a doubt of it was expressed by any body or from any quarter. On the 14th of February, two weeks after the sentence of banishment upon the French subjects, "the mail brought northern Gazettes, announcing the arrival of the treaty at Washington." Was this also a British trick and delusion, not to be trusted even by a relaxation of the severest military discipline, or a mitigation of the dangerous predominance of martial law? Our author says, "the hope that had been entertained that Jackson would now allow these unfortunate people to stay with their families, was disappointed."

Louallier, a member of the House of Representatives, had been conspicuous in bringing forth the energies of the state for its defence. His activity and usefulness were properly appreciated by his fellow-citizens. An opinion prevailed, that Jackson was unfriendly to the French citizens, and to the officers of the state government.

"A report, which now was afloat, that those who surrounded Jackson were labouring to induce him to arrest some individuals, alluded to in the general orders of the 28th of February, roused his indignation, to which (perhaps more honestly than prudently) he gave vent in a publication, of which the following is a translation, in the Courier de la Louisiane of the 3d of March."

The publication is of considerable length, and written with warmth and ability. Our author, after giving it at large, proceeds—

"Man bears nothing with more impatience, than the exposure of his errors, and the contempt of his authority. Those who had provoked Jackson's violent measure against the French subjects, availed themselves of the paroxysms of the ire which the publication excited: they threw fuel into the fire, and blew it into a flame. They persuaded him Louallier had been guilty of an offence, punishable with death, and he should have him tried by a court martial, as a spy. Yielding to this suggestion, and preparatory to such a trial, he ordered the publication of the second section of the rules and articles of war, which denounces the punishment of death against spies, and directed Louallier to be arrested and confined. Eaton is mistaken when he asserts that the section had been published before. The adjutant's letter to Leclerc, the printer of the Ami des Lois, requesting him to publish it, bears date of the fourth of March, the day after Louallier's publication made its appearance. The section was followed by a notice that 'the city of New-Orleans and its environs, being under martial law, and several encampments and fortifications within its limits, it was deemed necessary to give publicity to the section, for the information of all concerned.'

"Great, indeed, must have been Jackson's excitement, when he suffered himself to be persuaded, that Louallier could successfully be prosecuted as a spy. Eaton informs us, Louallier was prosecuted as one owing allegiance to the United States. The very circumstance of his owing that allegiance, prevented his being liable to a prosecution as a spy. He was a citizen of the United States: his being a member of the legislature, was evidence of this. If he, therefore, committed any act, which would constitute an alien a spy, he was guilty of high treason, and ought to have been delivered to the legitimate magistrate, to be prosecuted as a traitor."

Judge Martin goes into a short, but satisfactory argument, to prove that a citizen cannot be prosecuted as a spy under the articles of war. Whether, however, the General and his advisers considered Louallier as a spy, or a traitor, he "was arrested on Sunday the 5th of March, at noon, near the Exchange Coffee-house." He applied to a gentleman of the bar for legal relief. An application for this purpose was made to Judge Martin, (our author) one of the members of the Supreme Court of the state. The judge thought he had no jurisdiction over the case, and could not interfere. Hall, the District Judge of the United States, was then called upon for a writ of habeas corpus, which was granted. The attorney was directed by the Judge to inform the General of his application for the writ and the order for issuing it.—This was in courtesy.

"On receiving Morel's communication, the ebullition of Jackson's anger was such, that reason appeared to have lost its control. Those who had suggested the harsh measure against the French citizens, and the still more harsh one against Louallier, imagined the moment was come, when their enmity towards Hall might be gratified. We have seen that a number of individuals, who had hitherto sustained a fair character, were now known as accomplices of the Barrataria pirates. Prosecutions had been commenced against some of them, and Hall manifested that stern severity of character, which appals guilt. The counsel of these men had conceived the idea that he did not view their efforts to screen their clients, with the liberality and indulgence they deserved. The opportunity now offered of humbling this worthy magistrate, was not suffered to remain unimproved; and Jackson was assured that Hall, like Louallier, was guilty of an offence punishable with death.

"The general's attention was drawn to the seventh section of the rules and articles of war, which denounces the last punishment against persons aiding or abetting mutiny; and he was pressed to prosecute the judge before a court martial. As a preparatory step, with that promptitude of decision, which Eaton says is a leading trait in his character, he signed an instrument at once, the warrant for the arrest, and the mittimus for the imprisonment of Hall. He wrote to Colonel Arbuckle, who commanded at the barracks, that having received proof that Dominick A. Hall had been aiding, abetting, and exciting mutiny in his camp, he desired that a detachment might be ordered forthwith, to arrest and confine him; and that a report might be made as soon as he was arrested. 'You will,' as it is said in the conclusion of this paper, 'be vigilant; as the agents of our enemy are more numerous than we expected. You will be guarded against escapes.'

"The prosecution of the judge was intended to be grounded on the seventh section of the articles of war, which is in these words:—'Any officer or soldier, who shall begin, cause, excite, or join in, any mutiny or sedition, in any troop or company, in the service of the United States, or in any post, detachment, or guard, shall suffer death, or any other punishment, as by a court martial shall be inflicted.'

"Hall was not an officer, in the sense of the act of Congress—he was not a soldier, in the ordinary meaning of that word; but, according to the jurisprudence of head quarters, the proclamation of martial law had transformed every inhabitant of New-Orleans into a soldier, and rendered him punishable under the articles of war.

"The judge was accordingly arrested in his own house, at nine o'clock, and confined in the same apartment with Louallier, in the barracks.

"As soon as this was reported at head quarters, Major Chotard was despatched to demand from Claiborne, the clerk of the district court of the United States, the surrender of Louallier's petition, on the back of which Hall had written the order for issuing the writ of habeas corpus. It has been seen that there was not any officer of the state government, nor of the United States, out of the army, who imagined that a proclamation of martial law gave the general any right, nor imposed on others any obligation, which did not exist before. The clerk accordingly answered that there was a rule of court, which forbade him to part with any original paper lodged in his office; and he was ignorant of any right, in the commander of the army, to interfere with the records of the court. He however was, after much solicitation, prevailed on to take the document in his pocket, and accompany Chotard to head quarters.

"In the meanwhile, an express from the department of war had arrived, with the intelligence that the President of the United States had ratified the treaty, and an exchange of the ratifications had taken place at Washington, on the 17th of February, the preceding month. By an accident, which was not accounted for, a packet had been put into the hands of the messenger, instead of the one containing the official information of the exchange of the ratifications. But the man was bearer of an open order of the postmaster, to all his deputies on the road, to expedite him with the utmost celerity, as he carried information of the recent peace. He declared he had handed an official notice of this event to the governor of the state of Tennessee.

"On the arrival of the clerk at head quarters, Jackson asked him whether it was his intention to issue the writ: he replied it was his bounden duty to do so, and he most assuredly would. He was threatened with an arrest, but persisted in his asseveration that he would obey the judge's order. He had handed Louallier's petition to Jackson, and, before he retired, demanded the return of it; this was peremptorily refused, and the paper was withheld. It appears the date of the fifth of March had been originally on this document, and that being Sunday, Hall changed it to that of the following day, the sixth. The idea had been cherished, that this alteration might support an additional article, in the charges against Hall. It is not extraordinary, that those who imagined that, as Louallier might be tried for a libel, in a court martial, Hall might for forgery. Thus one inconsistency almost universally leads to another.

"Duplessis, the marshal of the United States, had volunteered his services, as an aid to Jackson; a little after midnight he visited head quarters. The imprisonment of Hall, and the accounts from Washington, had brought a great concourse of people near the general; who, elated by the success of the evening, met the marshal at the door, and announced to him, he had shopped the judge. Perceiving that Duplessis did not show his exultation, he inquired whether he would serve Hall's writ. The marshal replied, he had ever done his duty, which obliged him to execute all writs directed to him by the court, whose ministerial officer he was; and, looking sternly at the person who addressed him, added, he would execute the court's writ on any man. A copy of the proclamation of martial law, that lay on the table, was pointed to him, and Jackson said, he also would do his duty.

"A large concourse of people had been drawn to the Exchange coffee-house, during the night, by the passing events, which were not there, as at head quarters, a subject of exultation and gratulation. The circumstances were not unlike those of the year 1806, which Livingston describes as 'so new in the history of our country, that they will not easily gain belief, at a distance, and can scarcely be realized by those who beheld them. A dictatorial power, assumed by the commander of the American army—the military arrest of citizens, charged with a civil offence—the violation of the sanctuary of justice—an attempt to overawe, by denunciations, those who dared, professionally, to assert the authority of the laws—the unblushing avowal of the employment of military force, to punish a civil offence, and the hardy menace of persevering in the same course, were circumstances that must command attention, and excite the corresponding sentiments of grief, indignation, and contempt.'"

We have made our extract so copiously of this dangerous and extravagant proceeding, because we wish it to be represented in the language of the author, and not by any abridgment of ours. General Jackson having received intelligence of the treaty which he chose to agree that he relied upon, addressed a despatch to the British commander "to anticipate the happy return of peace." We again take up our author.

"Jackson now paused to deliberate, whether these circumstances did not require him, by a cessation of all measures of violence, to allow his fellow-citizens in New-Orleans, to anticipate this happy return of peace, the account of which, the first direct intelligence was to bring to him, in an official form—the untoward arrival of an orderly sergeant, with a message from Arbuckle, to whom the custody of Hall had been committed, prevented Jackson coming to that conclusion, which his unprejudiced judgment would have suggested. The prisoner had requested, that a magistrate might be permitted to have access to him, to receive an affidavit, which he wished to make, in order to resort to legal measures, for his release. Arbuckle desired to know the general's pleasure, on this application. Naturally impatient of any thing like control or restraint, the idea of a superior power to be employed against his decisions, threw Jackson into emotions of rage. Before they had sufficiently subsided to allow him to act on the message, some of his ordinary advisers came in, to recommend the arrest of Hollander, a merchant of some note. What was the offence of this man, has never been known; but Jackson's temper of mind was favourable to the views of his visiters. He ordered the arrest of the merchant, and forbade the access of the magistrate to Hall; the idea of allowing his fellow-citizens to anticipate the happy return of peace was abandoned, and measures were directed to be taken for the trial of Louallier."

The boasted "promptitude and decision" of the General's character, admirable qualities in their proper places and under proper regulation, carried him on, deeper and deeper, into the violation of the most sacred rights of a free citizen, and of the immunities of the officers of the law in the administration of the laws.

"Dick, the attorney of the United States, made application to Lewis, one of the district judges of the state, who was serving as a subaltern officer, in the Orleans rifle company, and whose conduct during the invasion, had received Jackson's particular commendation. Believing that his duty as a military man, did not diminish his obligation, as a judge, to protect his fellow-citizens from illegal arrest, Lewis, without hesitation, on the first call of Dick, laid down his rifle, and allowed the writ.

"Information of this having been carried to head quarters, Jackson immediately ordered the arrest of Lewis and Dick.

"Arbuckle, to whom Lewis's writ, in favour of Hall, was directed, refused to surrender his prisoner, on the ground he was committed by Jackson, under the authority of the United States.

"The orders for the arrest of Lewis and Dick were countermanded."

The effect of such proceedings, without parallel in a free government, and without apology any where, may be well imagined.

"The irritation of the public mind manifested itself, in the evening, by the destruction of a transparent painting, in honour of Jackson, which the proprietor of the Exchange coffee-house displayed, in the largest hall."

This brought the military in support of their General.

"A number of officers had compelled the proprietor of the Exchange coffee-house, to exhibit a new transparent painting, and to illuminate the hall in a more than usual manner. They attended in the evening, and stood near the painting, with the apparent intention of indicating a determination, to resist the attempt of taking down the painting. It was reported, a number of soldiers were in the neighbourhood, ready to march to the coffee-house, at the first call. This was not calculated to allay the excitement of the public mind. The prostration of the legitimate government; the imprisonment of the district judge of the United States, the only magistrate, whose interference could be successfully invoked, on an illegal arrest, under colour of the authority of the United States, the ascendency assumed by the military, appeared to have dissolved all the bands of social order in New-Orleans."

The good sense, we are told, of some of the most influential characters in the city, prevented the extremities to which these proceedings were fast approaching. The injured and the irritated were assured, "that Jackson's day of reckoning would arrive; that Hall, with the authority (though now without the power) of chastising the encroachments of the military, possessed the resolution, and would soon have the power to punish the violators of the law." The court martial, by whom Louallier was tried, acquitted him.

"Jackson was greatly disappointed at the conclusion to which the court martial had arrived; he, however, did not release either of his prisoners, and on the tenth issued the following general order:—

"'The commanding general disapproves of the sentence of the court martial, of which Major-general Gaines is president, on the several charges and specifications exhibited against Mr. Louallier; and is induced by the novelty and importance of the matters submitted to the decision of that court, to assign the reasons of this disapproval.'"

He gave his reasons at length, which only show how hard it is for certain tempers to acknowledge a wrong, or return to the right.

"The court martial consoled themselves, by the reflection, that their sentence, though disapproved by Jackson, was in perfect conformity with decisions of the President of the United States, and of the supreme court of the state of New-York, in similar cases."

There is something in the name and character of a Court, which assures us of its respect for justice and the law.

"The independent stand, taken by the court martial, had left no glimpse of hope, at head quarters, that the prosecution of Hall, on the charge of mutiny, on which he had been imprisoned, could be attempted with any prospect of success—the futility of any further proceedings against Louallier was evident—Jackson, therefore, put an end to Hall's imprisonment on Saturday, the 11th of March. The word imprisonment is used, because Eaton assures his readers, that 'Judge Hall was not imprisoned; it was merely an arrest.' Hall had been taken from his bed chamber, on the preceding Sunday, at 9 o'clock in the evening, by a detachment of about one hundred men, dragged through the streets, and confined in the same apartment with Louallier, in the barracks. Three days after, it had been officially announced to the inhabitants of New-Orleans, that Jackson was in possession of persuasive evidence, that a state of peace existed, and the militia had been discharged, the door of Hall's prison was thrown open, but not for his release. He was put under a guard, who led him several miles beyond the limits of the city, where they left him, with a prohibition to return, 'till the ratification of the treaty was regularly announced, or the British shall have left the southern coast.'

"This last, and useless display of usurped power, astonished the inhabitants. They thought, that, if the general feared the return of the British, the safety of New-Orleans would be better insured, by his recall of the militia, than by the banishment of the legitimate magistrate. It was the last expansion of light, and momentary effulgence, that precedes the extinguishment of a taper.

"At the dawn of light, on Monday, the 13th, an express reached head quarters, with the despatch which had accidentally been misplaced, in the office of the secretary of war, three weeks before. The cannon soon announced the arrival of this important document, and Louallier was indebted for his liberation, to the precaution, which Eaton says, the President of the United States had taken, to direct Jackson to issue a proclamation for the pardon of all military offences."

Judge Hall had suffered indignity without being disgraced; he had submitted to physical force without yielding his spirit to debasement; or surrendering one of his official or personal rights. His reward awaited him, and it is eloquently recorded by our historian.

"Hall's return to the city was greeted by the acclamations of the inhabitants. He was the first judge of the United States they had received, and they had admired in him the distinguishing characteristics of an American magistrate—a pure heart, clean hands, and a mind susceptible of no fear, but that of God. His firmness had, eight years before, arrested Wilkinson in his despotic measures. He was now looked upon to show, that if he had been unable to stop Jackson's arbitrary steps, he would prevent him from exulting, in the impunity of his trespass."

Dick, the District Attorney, has a fair claim to a participation in these honours.

"He was anxious to lose no time, in calling the attention of the district court of the United States, to the violent proceedings, during the week that had followed the arrival of the first messenger of peace; but Hall insisted on a few days being exclusively given to the manifestation of the joyous feelings, which the termination of the war excited. He did not yield to Dick's wishes till the 21st. The affidavits of the clerk of the district court, of the marshal of the United States, of the attorney of Louallier, and of the commander at the barracks, were then laid before the court."

The case presented to the court, was substantially such as appears in the foregoing narrative. Hall was as resolute in his court, as Jackson at the head of an army; the Judge was as fearless in maintaining the law, as the General had been in trampling upon it. "On motion of the Attorney of the United States, a rule to show cause, why process of attachment should not issue against Jackson, was granted."

On the return day, the General, accompanied by one of his aids, appeared before the court, and presented his answer to the rule. Some legal questions were discussed and decided on the propriety of admitting the answer. Finally, the rule was made absolute, that is, the attachment was ordered. The General is still haunted by bad advisers.

"Jackson's advisers now found he could not be defended on the merits, with the slightest hope of success, as the attorney of the United States would probably draw from him by interrogatories, the admission, that both Louallier and the judge were kept in prison, long after persuasive evidence had been received at head quarters, of the cessation of the state of war. They therefore recommended to him not to answer the interrogatories, which would authorize the insinuation that he had been condemned unheard.

"It appears that some of his party, at this period, entertained the hope that Hall could be intimidated, and prevented from proceeding further. A report was accordingly circulated, that a mob would assemble in and about the court-house—that the pirates of Barataria, to whom the judge had rendered himself obnoxious before the war, by his zeal and strictness, in the prosecution that had been instituted against several of their ringleaders, would improve this opportunity of humbling him. Accordingly, groups of them took their stands, in different parts of the hall, and gave a shout when Jackson entered it. It is due to him to state, that it did not appear that he had the least intimation that a disturbance was intended, and his influence was honestly exercised to prevent disorder."

When the General was called, "he addressed a few words to the court, expressive of his intention not to avail himself of the faculty to answer interrogatories." The District Attorney then addressed the court, with firmness, but good temper. In conclusion he said,—

"That credulity itself could not admit the proposition, that persuasive evidence that the war had ceased, and belief that necessity required that violent measures should be persisted in to prevent the exercise of the judicial power of the legitimate tribunal, could exist, at the same time, in the defendant's mind."

The defendant—General Jackson—resorted to a strange equivocation to extricate himself.

"The general made a last effort to avert the judgment of the court against him, by an asseveration, he had imprisoned Dominick A. Hall, and not the judge: his attention was drawn to the affidavit of the marshal, in which he swore Jackson had told him, 'I have shopped the judge.'

We come, with unaffected gratification, to the final triumph of the law, in this contest with military power.

"The court, desirous of manifesting moderation, in the punishment of the defendant for the want of it, said that, in consideration of the services the general had rendered to his country, imprisonment should make no part of the sentence, and condemned him to pay a fine of one thousand dollars and costs, only."

We should indeed regret, if our history terminated these memorable transactions here. Every reader will be anxious to learn—How did the impetuous spirit of the General, inflamed by his recent triumphs and glories in the field, receive the condemnation of the law? What bursts of passionate violence did he exhibit? What terrible explosion followed the sentence of the court? Not a symptom or movement of the kind. He seemed to awaken, as from a tempestuous dream, "the helm of reason lost," and to fall into the character of a good citizen with dignity and grace.

"On Jackson's coming out of the court-house, his friends procured a hack, in which he entered, and they dragged it to the Exchange coffee-house, where he made a speech, in the conclusion of which he observed, that, 'during the invasion, he had exerted every faculty in support of the constitution and laws—on that day, he had been called on to submit to their operation, under circumstances, which many persons might have deemed sufficient to justify resistance. Considering obedience to the laws, even when we think them unjustly applied, as the first duty of the citizen, he did not hesitate to comply with the sentence they had heard pronounced;' and he entreated the people, to remember the example he had given them, of respectful submission to the administration of justice."

We heartily wish that the scene had closed here, and the General had appeared no more on that stage. But there was that within him which forbade a quiet and unresisting resignation to his discomfiture and humiliation.

"A few days after, he published, in the Ami des Lois, the answer he had offered to the district court, preceded by an exordium, in which he complained, that the court had refused to hear it. He added, that the judge 'had indulged himself, on his route to Bayou Sarah, in manifesting apprehensions as to the fate of the country, equally disgraceful to himself, and injurious to the interest and safety of the state,' and concluded—'should Judge Hall deny this statement, the general is prepared to prove it, fully and satisfactorily.'

"The gauntlet did not long remain on the ground, and the following piece appeared in the Louisiana Courier:

"'It is stated in the introductory remarks of General Jackson,' that 'on the judge's route to Bayou Sarah, he manifested apprehensions as to the safety of the country, disgraceful to himself, and injurious to the state.' Judge Hall knows full well, how easy it is for one, with the influence and patronage of General Jackson, to procure certificates and affidavits. He knows that men, usurping authority, have their delators and spies: and that, in the sunshine of imperial or dictatorial power, swarms of miserable creatures are easily generated, from the surrounding corruption, and rapidly changed into the shape of buzzing informers. Notwithstanding which, Judge Hall declares, that on his route to Bayou Sarah, he uttered no sentiment disgraceful to himself, or injurious to the state. He calls upon General Jackson, to furnish that full and satisfactory evidence of his assertion, which he says he is enabled to do.' The pledge was never redeemed."

Judge Martin's book is here brought to a conclusion, with some appropriate and forcible reflections upon the duties and uses of History, in affording lessons to men, high in authority, to bridle their passions; to select capable and honest advisers; with other wise and wholesome admonitions.

We heartily unite with the Judge in his just and patriotic aspirations in behalf of the Judiciary.

Note.—In quoting from our history the anecdote respecting the residence and imprisonment of Fenelon in Canada, we do not intend to express a belief in its authenticity. It is the first time we have heard that the celebrated author of Telemachus had ever been in this country; and, as Judge Martin does not inform us of the authority on which the story is related, we know not what credit it is entitled to.