the simplicity dinner was at an end. released by the president’s withdrawal, the crowd—it could be called little else—broke from the table. the anteroom filled with struggling guests, excited, gesticulating, exclaiming.
meriwether lewis, anxious only to escape from his social duties that he might rejoin his chief, felt a soft hand on his arm, and turned. theodosia alston was looking up at him.
“do you forget your friends so soon? i must add my good wishes. it was splendid, what mr. jefferson said—and it was true!”
“i wish it might be true,” said the young man. “i wish i might be worthy of such a man.”
“you are worthy of us all,” returned theodosia.
“people are kind to the condemned,” said he sententiously.
at the door they were once more close to the others of the diplomatic party who had sat in company at table. the usual crush of those clamoring for their carriages had begun.
“my dear,” said mr. merry to his irate spouse, “i [pg 72]shall, if mrs. alston will permit, ask you to take her up in your carriage with you to her home. i am to go with mr burr.”
the spanish minister made similar excuse to his own wife. thus theodosia alston left meriwether lewis for the second time that day.
it was a late conference, the one held that night at the home of the vice-president of the united states. burr, cool, calculating, always in hand, sat and weighed many matters well before he committed himself beyond repair. his keen mind saw now, and seized the advantage for which he waited.
“you say right, gentlemen, both of you,” he began, leaning forward. “i would not blame you if you never went to the white house again.”
“should i ever do so again,” blazed the spanish minister, “i will take my own wife in to dinner on my own arm, and place her at the head of the table, where she belongs! it was an insult to my sovereign that we received today.”
“as much myself, sir!” said mr. merry, his brows contracted, his face flushed still with anger. “i shall know how to answer the next invitation which comes from mr jefferson.[1] i shall ask him whether or not [pg 73]there is to be any repetition of this sort of thing.”
“so much for the rule of the plain people!” said burr, as he laid the tips of his fingers together contemplatively.
“yet, colonel burr, you are vice-president under this administration!” broke out merry.
“one must use agencies and opportunities as they [pg 74]offer. my dear sir, perhaps you do not fully know me. i took this election only in order to be close to the seat of affairs. i am no such rabid adherent to democracy as some may think. you would be startled if i told you that i regard this republic as no more than an experiment. this is a large continent. take all that western country—louisiana—it ought not to be called attached to the united states. at this very moment it is half in rebellion against its constituted authorities. more than once it has been ready to take arms, to march against new orleans, and to set up a new country of its own. it is geography which fights for monarchy, against democracy, on this continent—in spite of what all these people say.”
“sir,” said the british minister, “you have been a student of affairs.”
“and why not? i claim intelligence, good education, association with men of thought. my reason tells me that conquest is in the blood of those men who settled in the mississippi valley. they went into kentucky and tennessee for the sake of conquest. they are restless, unattached, dissatisfied—ready for any great move. no move can be made which will seem too great or too daring for them. now let me confess somewhat to you—for i know that you will respect my confidence, if you go no further with me than you have gone tonight. i have bought large acreages of land in the lower louisiana country, ostensibly for colonization purposes. i do purpose colonization there—but not under the flag of this republic!”
silence greeted his remark. the others sat for a [pg 75]moment, merely gazing at him, half stunned, remembering only that he was jefferson’s colleague, vice-president of the united states.
“you cannot force geography,” resumed burr, in tones as even as if he had but spoken of bartering for a house and lot. “lower louisiana and mexico together—yes, perhaps. florida, with us—yes, perhaps. indeed, territories larger perhaps than any of us dare dream at present, once our new flag is raised. all that i purpose is to do what has been discussed a thousand times before—to unite in a natural alliance of self-interest those men who are sundered in every way of interest and alliance from the government on this side of the alleghanies. would you call that treason—conspiracy? i dislike the words. i call it rather a plan based upon sound reason and common sense; and i hold that its success is virtually assured.”
“you will explain more fully, colonel burr?” mr. merry was intent now on all that he heard.
“i march only with destiny, yonder—do you not see, gentlemen?” burr resumed. “those who march with me are in alliance with natural events. this republic is split now, at this very moment. it must follow its own fate. if the flag of spain were west of it on the south, and the flag of britain west of it on the north, why, then we should have the natural end of the republic’s expansion. with those great powers in alliance at its back, with the fleets of england on the seas, at the mouth of the great river—owning the lands in canada on the north—it would be a simple thing, i say, to crush this republic against the wall of [pg 76]the appalachians, or to drive it once more into the sea.”
they were silent alike before the enormousness and the enormity of this. reading their thoughts, burr raised his hand in deprecation.
“i know what is in your minds, gentlemen. the one thing which troubles you is this—the man who speaks to you is vice-president of the united states. i say what in your country would be treason. in this country i maintain it is not yet treason, because thus far we are in an experiment. we have no actual reign of reason and of law; and he marches to success who marches with natural laws and along the definite trend of existing circumstances and conditions.”
“what you say, mr. burr,” began merry gravely, “assuredly has the merit of audacity. and i see that you have given it thought.”
“i interest you, gentlemen! you can go with me only if it be to your interest and to that of your countries to join with me in these plans. they have gone far forward—let me tell you that. i know my men from st. louis to new orleans—i know my leaders—i know that population. if this be treason, as mr. patrick henry said, let us make the most of it. at least it is the intention of aaron burr. i stake upon it all my fortune, my life, the happiness of my family. do you think i am sincere?”
merry sat engaged in thought. he could see vast movements in the game of nations thus suddenly shown before him on the diplomatic board. and on his part [pg 77]it is to be said that he was there to represent the interests of his own government alone.
in the same even tones, burr resumed his astonishing statements.
“my son-in-law, mr. alston, of south carolina—a very wealthy planter of that state—is in full accord with all my plans. my own resources have been pledged to their utmost, and he has been so good as to add largely from his own. i admit to you that i sought alliance with him deliberately when he asked my daughter’s hand. he is an ambitious man, and perhaps he saw his way to the fulfillment of certain personal ambitions. he has contributed fifty thousand dollars to my cause. he will have a place of honor and profit in the new government which will be formed yonder in the mississippi valley.”
“so, then,” began yrujo, “the financing is somewhat forward! but fifty thousand is only a drop.”
“we may as well be plain,” rejoined burr. “time is short—you know that it is short. we all heard what mr. jefferson said—we know that if we are to take action it must be at once. that expedition must not succeed! if that wedge be driven through to the pacific—and who can say what that young virginian may do?—your two countries will be forever separated on this continent by one which will wage successful war on both. swift action is my only hope—and yours.”
“your funds,” said mr. merry, “seem to me inadequate for the demands which will be made upon them. you said fifty thousand?”
[pg 78]
burr nodded.
“i pledge you as much more—on one condition that i shall name.”
burr turned from mr. merry to señor yrujo. the latter nodded.
“i undertake to contribute the same amount,” said the envoy of spain, “but with no condition attached.”
the color deepened in the cheek of the great conspirator. his eye glittered a trifle more brilliantly.
“you named a certain condition, sir,” he said to merry.
“yes, one entirely obvious.”
“what is it, then, your excellency?” burr inquired.
“you yourself have made it plain. the infernal ingenuity of yonder corsican—curse his devilish brain!—has rolled a greater stone in our yard than could be placed there by any other human agency. we could not believe that napoleon bonaparte would part with louisiana thus easily. no doubt he feared the british fleet at the mouth of the river—no doubt spain was glad enough that our guns were not at new orleans ere this. but, i say, he rolled that stone in our yard. if title to this louisiana purchase is driven through to the pacific—as mr. jefferson plans so boldly—the end is written now, colonel burr, to all your enterprises! britain will be forced to content herself with what she can take on the north, and spain eventually will hold nothing worth having on the south. by the lord, general bonaparte fights well—he knows how to sacrifice a pawn in order to checkmate a king!”
[pg 79]
“yes, your excellency,” said burr, “i agree with you, but——”
“and now my condition. follow me closely. i say if that wedge is driven home—if that expedition of mr. jefferson’s shall succeed—its success will rest on one factor. in short, there is a man at the head of that expedition who must fight with us and not against us, else my own interest in this matter lacks entirely. you know the man i have in mind.”
burr nodded, his lips compressed.
“that young man, colonel burr, will go through! i know his kind. believe me, if i know men, he is a strong man. let that man come back from his expedition with the map of a million square miles of new american territory hanging at his belt, like a scalp torn from his foes—and there will be no chance left for colonel burr and his friends!”
“all that your excellency has said tallies entirely with our own beliefs,” rejoined burr. “but what then? what is the condition?”
“simply this—we must have captain lewis with us and not against us. i want that man! i must have him. that expedition must never proceed. it must be delayed, stopped. money was raised twenty years ago in london to make this same sort of journey across the continent, but the plan fell through. revive it now, and we english still may pull it off. but it will be too late if captain lewis goes forward now—too late for us—too late for you and your plan, mr. burr. i want that man! we must have him with us!”
burr sat in silence for a time.
[pg 80]
“you open up a singular train of thought for me, your excellency,” said he at length. “he does belong with us, that young virginian!”
“you know him, then?” inquired the british minister. “that is to say, you know him well?”
“perfectly. why should i not? he nearly was my son-in-law. egad! give him two weeks more, and he might have been—he got the news of my daughter’s marriage just too late. it hit him hard. in truth, i doubt if he ever has recovered from it. they say he still takes it hard. now, you ask me how to get that man, your excellency. there is perhaps one way in which it could be accomplished, and only one.”
“how, then?” inquired merry.
“the way of a woman with a man may always be the answer in matters of that sort!” said aaron burr.
the three sat and looked each at the other for some time without comment.
“i find colonel burr’s brain active in all ways!” began señor yrujo dryly. “now i confess that he goes somewhat in advance of mine.”
“listen,” said aaron burr. “what mr. jefferson said of captain lewis is absolutely true—his will has never been known to relax or weaken. once resolved, he cannot change—i will not say he does not, but that he cannot.”
“then even the unusual weapon you suggest might not avail!” mr. merry’s smile was not altogether pleasant.
“women would listen to him readily, i think,” remarked yrujo.
[pg 81]
“gallant in his way, yes,” said burr.
“then what do you mean by saying something about the way of a woman with a man?”
“only that it is the last remaining opportunity for us,” rejoined aaron burr. “the appeal to his senses—of course, we will set that aside. the appeal to his chivalry—that is better! the appeal to his ambition—that is less, but might be used. the appeal to his sympathy—the wish to be generous with the woman who has not been generous with him, for the reason that she could not be—here again you have another argument which we may claim as possible.”
“you reason well,” said merry. “but while men are mortal, yonder, if i mistake not, is a gentleman.”
“precisely,” said burr. “if we ask him to resign his expedition we are asking him to alter all his loyalty to his chief—and he will not do that. any appeal made to him must be to his honor or to his chivalry; otherwise it were worse than hopeless. he would no more be disloyal to my son-in-law, the lady’s husband—in case it came to that—than he would be disloyal to the orders of his chief.”
“fie! fie!” said yrujo, serving himself with wine from a decanter on the table. “all men are mortal. i agree with your first proposition, colonel burr, that the safest argument with a man—with a young man especially, and such a young man—is a woman—and such a woman!”
“one thing is sure,” rejoined burr, flushing. “that man will succeed unless some woman induces him to change—some woman, acting under an appeal to his [pg 82]chivalry or his sense of justice. his reasons must be honest to him. they must be honest to her alike.”
burr added this last virtuously, and mr. merry bowed deeply in return.
“this is not only honorable of you, colonel burr, but logical.”
“that means some sort of sacrifice for him,” suggested yrujo presently. “but some one is sacrificed in every great undertaking. we cannot count the loss of men when nations seek to extend their boundaries and enhance their power. only the question is, at what sacrifice, through what appeal to his chivalry, can his assistance be carried to us?”
“we have left out of our accounting one factor,” said burr after a time.
“what, then?”
“one factor, i repeat, we have overlooked,” said burr. “that is the wit of a woman! i am purposing to send as our agent with him no other than my daughter, mrs. alston. there is no mind more brilliant, no heart more loyal, than hers—nor any soul more filled with ambition! she believes in her father absolutely—will use every resource of her own to upbuild her father’s ambitions.[2] now, [pg 83]women have their own ways of accomplishing results. suppose we leave it to my daughter to fashion her own campaign? there is nothing wrong in the relations of these two, but at table today i saw his look to her, and hers to him in reply. we are speaking in deep and sacred confidence here, gentlemen. so i say to you, ask no questions of me, and let me ask none of her. let me only say to her: ‘my daughter, your father’s success, his life, his fortune—the life and fortune and success of your husband as well—depend upon one event, depend upon you and your ability to stop yonder expedition of captain meriwether lewis into the missouri country!’”
“when could we learn?” demanded the british minister.
“i cannot say how long a time it may take,” burr replied. “i promise you that my daughter shall have a personal interview with captain lewis before he starts for the west.”
“but he starts at dawn!” smiled minister merry.
“were it an hour earlier than that, i would promise it. but now, gentlemen, let us come to the main point. if we succeed, what then?”
the british minister was businesslike and definite.
“fifty thousand dollars at once, out of a special fund in my control. meantime i would write at once to my government and lay the matter before them.[3] [pg 84]we shall need a fleet at the south of the mississippi river. that will cost money—it will require at least half a million dollars to assure any sort of success in plans so large as yours, mr. burr. but on the contingency that she stops him, i promise you that amount. fifty thousand down—a half-million more when needed.”
the dark eye of aaron burr flashed.
“then,” said he firmly, “success will meet our efforts—i guarantee it! i pledge all my personal fortune, my friends, my family, to the last member.”
“i am for my country,” said mr. merry simply. “it is plain to see that napoleon sought to humble us by ceding that great region to this republic. he meant to build up in the new world another enemy to great britain. but if we can thwart him—if at the very start we can divide the forces which might later be allied against us—perhaps we may conquer a wider sphere of possession for ourselves on this rich continent. there is no better colonizing ground in all the world!”
[pg 85]
“you understand my plan,” said aaron burr. “reduced to the least common denominator, meriwether lewis and my daughter theodosia have our fate in their hands.”
the others rose. the hour was past midnight. the secret conference had been a long one.
“he starts tomorrow—is that sure?” asked merry.
“as the clock,” rejoined burr. “she must see him before the breakfast hour.”
“my compliments, colonel burr. good night!”
“good night, sir,” added yrujo. “it has been a strange day.”
“secrecy, gentlemen, secrecy! i hope soon to have more news for you, and good news, too. au revoir!”
burr himself accompanied them to the door.
