USA > Mississippi > A history of Mississippi : from the discovery of the great river > Part 14
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ing by referring him to his superior, Carondelet, at New Orleans."
Ellicott was evidently out of his element. His "creden- tials" had never been asked for, and no time had been as- signed for his "presentation at court," and therefore he was unamiable to a degree. Hence he persuaded himself, and succeeded in imbning sundry citizens with his opinions. that the Spanish authorities had no intention of surrender- ing the country to the United States in accordance with the stipulations of the treaty. He impressed many people with the belief that they were in danger of having their property confiscated, and were also in danger of arrest and deportation, and that it would be better for them to with- draw from the district and retire to the American settle- ments, the nearest of which was on the Cumberland river! He carried his annoyance to the extent of addressing a formal application to Governor Gayoso, under date of March 31st, for permission to the people to sell their prop- erty, and for passports to leave the district. On the same day the Governor answered his application in the follow- ing manly terms :
"You inform me of several respectable inhabitants re- questing your interposition, to procure for them a privi- lege they have always enjoyed, and which is the birth-right of the Spaniard. There is not one single example in this government of having opposed any one selling his property and leaving the country, whenever he asked for a passport, and, of course, I shall not now deny the same privilege to any one who calls for it. No one who obeys the laws is in danger of arrest. There is but one single individual imprisoned in this entire district, and that is upon a crim- inal charge. There is not a single patrol out in pursuit of anybody, nor do I find any occasion for it. But if neces- sary I shall use every means in my power to repress dis- order, and to keep the peace of the country, as I have al- ways done !"
Referring to this correspondence, Claiborne caustically remarks: "The same people into whose minds Ellicott had infused his own suspicions, had lived under the mild rule of Gayoso, and his predecessors, in peace ; had en-
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joyed the same rights as Spanish-born subjects, had re- ceived liberal grants of land, of their own selection, for merely nominal fees ; had paid no taxes, rendered no mili- tary service ; had been appointed to offices of trust ; had been protected, on their prayer, from the rapacity of usur- pers and alien creditors, and to stimulate their industry, had been allowed free access to the market of New Orleans, and had been paid by the king a liberal price for all the tobacco they could produce. Prior to the arrival of Mr. Ellicott, no discontent prevailed, and in the entire district, from the thirty-first degree of north latitude, to the mouth of the Yazoo, but one man was in prison ! And this in a frontier settlement, with a heterogeneous population of conflicting races and creeds, with no restraining power but the Governor and half a dozen magistrates."
On April 15th, 1797, Lieutenant Pope, United States army, arrived at the Walnut Hills, (now Vicksburg), with his company, where the Spaniards were occupying fort Nogales. He, in accordance with a notification from Gov- ernor Gayoso, anchored his boats in the river to await events. As soon as Ellicott heard of the arrival of Lieu- tenant Pope at the Walnut Hills, he wrote to that officer informing him that war between the United States and Spain was imminent. That his proper post was at Natchez, and urged his immediate arrival. Pope took his departure for Natchez, where he soon arrived, says Claiborne, "with- out artillery, money, medicines or a surgeon, and was sup- plied by Governor Gayoso, the enemy whom he had ex- pected to fight, with clothing and medicine for his men."
Ellicott and Lieutenant Pope soon disagreed, and finally Ellicott succeeded in imbning the minds of "lewd fellows of the baser sort" with such hostility against Governor Gayoso, that that official was compelled to abandon his private residence and take refuge in the fort. This inci- dent caused the deepest disgust in the minds of the citi- zens, and realizing the danger of a conflict between the Americans and the Spanish soldiers, while the two govern- ments were on the most amicable terms, many of the best citizens assembled at the residence of William Belk, and appointed a committee of safety, composed of Anthony
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Hutchins, Cato West, Bernard Lintot, Gabriel Benoist , Joseph Bernard, and William Ratliff. This committee met at Natchez and adopted the following propositions to be laid before Governor Gayoso, and respectfully asking their transmission to the Governor-General at New Or- leans :
1st. "The inhabitants of the district of Natchez, who, under the persuasion that they were citizens of the United States, agreeably to the treaty, assembled and embodied themselves, are not to be prosecuted or injured on that account, but to stand exonerated and acquitted.
2d. The inhabitants of the district above the thirty-first degree of north latitude are not to be embodied as militia, or to be called upon to aid in any military operation, except in case of Indian invasion, or the suppression of riots, dur- ing the present state of uncertainty, owing to the late treaty between His Catholic Majesty and the United States, not being yet fully carried into effect.
3d. The laws of Spain in the above district shall be con- tinued, and are on all occasions to be executed with mild- ness and moderation : nor shall any inhabitant be trans- ported as a prisoner out of his government on any pretext whatever. And notwithstanding the operation of the Spanish laws is here admitted, yet the inhabitants person- ally shall be considered as neutrals, in the present state of uncertainty.
4th. The committee engage to recommend it to their constituents, and to the utmost of their power will endea- vor to preserve the peace and tranquility of the district, and the due execution of justice."
These propositions having been laid before Governor Gayoso, the following response to the Committee was made :
"Being always desirous of promoting the public good, we do join in the same sentiment with the Committee, and accede to their four stipulations, agreed upon for the pur- pose of re-establishing the peace and tranquility of the district ; and that it may be constant and notorious, I sign the present under the seal of my arms, and countersigned.
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by the Secretary of the Government, at Natchez, June 22d, 1797.
MANUEL GAYOSO DE LEMOS,
Brigadier in the Royal Armies, Governor, Military and Political, of the Natchez and its defenses.
JOSEPH VIDAL,
Secretary.
These propositions having been conveyed by special messenger to Governor-General Carondelet, at New Or- leans, that official returned them with his hearty approval.
"This," says Claiborne, "restored the public tranquility, and Governor Gayoso returned to his usual residence. About this time Carondelet being promoted to the govern- ment of Quito, Gayoso succeeded him as Governor-Gen- eral of Louisiana, leaving Don Stephen Minor as Governor of the Natchez district.
The Stephen Minor upon whom the command of the Natchez district was thus devolved, was a native of Penn- sylvania. "He first visited New Orleans in 1780," says B. L. C. Wailes, "to procure military stores for the American posts on the Ohio and the Monongahela. On his return, with a caravan of loaded mules, not far from the post of Arkansas, his stores were plundered, and his men all mur- dered, his own escape being due to a fortuitous detention by sickness, a few hours behind his party. He afterwards repaired to New Orleans, joined Galvez in his expedition against Mobile, where his gallantry attracted the atten- tion of that officer, and secured the favor of the General, by whom his position in the Spanish army was advanced. In 1783, he was sent to Natchez, where his rank seems to have been that of "Aid Major" to the post. He remained at Natchez during the whole term of the Spanish jurisdic- tion, acting during the latter period as aid to Governor Gayoso. by whom, when appointed as Governor-General of Louisiana, he was left as acting Commandant of the dis- trict of Natchez ; and De Grand Pre appointed to succeed Gayoso, not assuming the duties of the office, Major Minor continued to act until the country was evacuated."
Major Minor was popular with all classes, was genial and generous, and when Spain finally evacuated the coun- try he resigned his commission in the Spanish army and
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settled in what is now known as Adams county. He ac- cumulated a large fortune. His descendants are still to be found in the States of Mississippi and Louisiana. He was the father of the late Wm. J. Minor, whose grandchil- dren yet reside in the city of Natchez.
One of the last acts of Gayoso, previous to leaving Natchez to assume his new duties in New Orleans, was one highly honorable to him, and illustrative of his liberal course to the American people residing in the district under his command. A number of gentlemen addressed him the following letter:
"We, the underwritten, a committee appointed by the inhabitants of the district, recommend to your Excellency that the inhabitants, in case they have reason to be dis- satisfied with their Alcaldes now in office, shall be at liberty to assemble and nominate three persons, one of whom your Excellency will be pleased to put in commis- sion.
We, likewise, recommend it to your Excellency, to quiet the minds of the people, that you do consent that all pro- ceedings on criminal process or charges, be inquired into and acted upon by the Alcaldes of the district where such crimes and misdemeanors have been committed, and that the magistrates be authorized to summon assistance to apprehend criminals and disturbers of the peace."
ANTHONY HUTCHINS, BERNARD LINTOT, ISAAC GAILLARD, GABRIEL BENOIST, JOSEPH BERNARD, WM. RATLIFF.
Natchez, June 22, 1797.
To which the Governor replied as follows :
"By these presents I declare that, whenever it shall be found necessary, the inhabitants of each district will rep- resent to me, through one of the committee, the necessity of nominating a new Alcalde, I will issue the neces- sary permit to elect three of their principal men, one of whom I will appoint. Henceforth the Alcaldes shall take cognizance in the first instance of all misdemeanors com-
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mitted within their respective jurisdictions. If found necessary they will commit the accused to prison, and before sentence shall be pronounced will lay the case before me. In civil cases to the amount of fifty dollars they will decide, but parties may have three days within which to appeal to me, through the Alcalde, who, in such cases, will submit to me the proceedings. An appeal may be had from my decision to the Governor-General of this province, in all cases exceeding one hundred dollars. When par- ties agree in due form, to an arbitration, there is no ap- peal, and the Alcaldes will enforce the award of the arbi- trators."
The foregoing letter to Gayoso, made manifest the fact that the signers of that letter, and those whom they repre- sented, were thoroughly imbued with the principles of republican government and home rule. Later, in Septem- ber, 1797, Don Stephen Minor, who was acting as Governor ad interim of the district of Natchez, had given his assent to the election of "a Committee of Safety," to be voted for by the inhabitants of the district. When the day of elec- tion arrived, Lieutenant Pope of the United States army, who was thought to be entirely under the influence of Andrew Ellicott, prepared and sent to each of the polling places the following high-handed and insolent circular :
CAMP, September 2, 1797. Mr. Landon Davis, Homochitto :
SIR-It is with pain I am informed that you are taking an extremely active part in opposition to the present per- manent committee, who are making every exertion to re- store peace to the country. I shall with pleasure hear of your using every exertion in your power to lull the minds of the people in your quarter. They have taken up an erroneous opinion of the principles on which they are now acting. This cannot be permitted."
Mr. Davis read this epistle with contempt, but as it had been delivered to him while the election was being held, by an orderly in uniform, the effect of it was to intimidate and deter the people from voting. At a later period, dur- ing the process of reconstruction, the people of Mississippi and the other Southern States, had abundant experience
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of the presence of the military power at elections, and "the insolence of office," when sustained by armed soldiers.
The people of the present day well know how the su- premacy of the civil was maintained over the military power of the country, in later years, but it is gratifying to know that the spirit of liberty, as well as the indig- nant opposition to wrong, glowed as brightly in the hearts of the early settlers of Mississippi, as it did in the hearts of their sons and daughters at a later and not remote period. Col. Anthony Hutchins, an early pioneer in Mississippi, a man of education and fortune, of great force of character, patriotic and public spirited, who had been a soldier in early life, at once sent the following manly and ringing letter to Lieutenant Pope, rebuking him for his insolence and teaching him a lesson he probably never ceased to remember :
WHITE APPLE VILLAGE, Sept. 6, 1797.
"SIR-You are perfectly aware that by due authority the inhabitants of this district held an election on Saturday last for the purpose of electing a committee to draft a memorial to Congress, and an agent to represent them at the seat of government.
"More voters assembled, and there would have been the largest vote ever thrown in this district, but for your im- proper letter of interference, and it is my duty to tell you so. You awed and discouraged men as free as yourself, from their right to vote, and the government never sent you here to do that. On the 12th of June you issued a letter to the inhabitants, which fomented the insurrection that Ellicott had planned, a man that you personally scorn and publicly deride, and yet you have allowed him to use you to your own discredit, and to the injury of this district. I am persuaded that you have good intentions, but you are badly blinded. I therefore deal frankly with you, and in a friendly spirit, by informing you that, in behalf of the in- habitants, who feel outraged, I shall write to your supe- rior, Captain Guion, at the Chickasaw Bluffs, who I heartily wish was here now."
The committee elected was Col. Thomas M. Green,
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Daniel Burnet, Justus King, Landon Davis, Dr. John Shaw, Anthony Hoggett, James Stuart, Chester Ashley and Abner Green. These were all representative men, gentlemen of character and education, who founded large families, made fortunes, and their descendants to-day may be found in large numbers in Mississippi and Louisiana.
"The Committee of Safety," says Claiborne, "adopted a trenchant memorial to Congress, representing the anxiety of the people in regard to Georgia and British land claims, the large majority holding under Spanish tenures, praying that no persons interested in land speculations should be appointed to office; asking for the privilege of electing their own officers ; deprecating such a government as had been established for the northwestern territory as not adapted to this district ; complaining of the military in- terference of Lieutenant Pope, and praying that Andrew Ellicott be either recalled or confined strictly to the busi- ness he was sent to do."
The letter in which Col. Hutchins informed Lieutenant Pope he should write to his superior, Captain Guion, then at Chickasaw Bluff, soon produced good fruit. In a letter from Captain Guion, to his subordinate, he uses the follow- ing language :
"I am sorry to observe that there are complaints against you for improper conduct, and in that degree as to give serious displeasure to the Spanish authorities, and raise up obstacles to the execution of the treaty. You are strictly to avoid this in future. Such, I am sure, were your orders when you left Fort Massac, and I reiterated them in my letter of the 4th. You must, by a change of conduct, remove any bad impressions made on Governor Gayoso."
To Governor Gayoso, himself, he wrote: "I am sorry to hear that the officer heretofore commanding the United States troops at Natchez, has given to your Excellency, and to the subjects of His Catholic Majesty, and to the other inhabitants of that district, cause for discontent. This shall no longer be the case. He has received my orders, and I hope very soon to be there in person."
The Captain Guion referred to was assigned by General Wilkinson, then commanding the United States army, to
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the delicate and responsible duty of receiving the territory with its forts, armaments, etc., then occupied by the Span- ish authorities. Claiborne thus refers to him: "Captain Isaac Guion, the officer selected for this delicate and im- portant expedition, was a native of West Chester county, New York, of a highly respectable family of Huguenot extraction. He entered the Continental army in 1775, at a very early age, as an ensign, and was in the assault on Quebec, December 31, 1775, and stood near the gallant General Montgomery, when he, two aids, and a number of others were killed by a discharge from a British battery only forty paces from their position. He continued in service until November 23, 1783, when the army was dis- banded. He re-entered the army March 5, 1792, and re- mained in it until June 1, 1802.
During the latter period he served in Wayne's celebra- ted legion, and commanded a company in the memorable battle of August 20th, 1794. He was a thoroughly trained officer ; impetuous but cool ; resolute, inflexible, punctil- ious, extremely courteous, but exacting in return every honor due to his rank and character. He was a singu- larly handsome man, with a military port and manner, very fascinating in conversation, familiar with ancient and modern languages, and with the literature of the age.
In pursuance of his orders Captain Guion, with a strong detachment of infantry and artillery, left Fort Washing- ton, (now Cincinnati), in May, 1797, by way of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers. His first stop was at Fort Massac, the most advanced post of the United States, situated on the Ohio river, in what is now the State of Illinois, to take on some additional artillery. His next stopping place was at New Madrid, in the present State of Missouri, where the Spaniards maintained a fort. The commandant at New Madrid objected to his proceeding further down the river, but finally consented that he should proceed as far as the Chickasaw Bluffs, on condition that the American soldier should pledge himself to go no further until the matter should be determined by their superiors. Giving this pledge, Captain Guion departed and arrived at what is now known as Memphis on the 20th day of July, 1797.
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Here he found that the Spanish commandant had destroy- ed'the works, retired from the Bluffs, crossed the river and taken position at Hopefield, or Esperanza, in what is now known as Arkansas. Having no shelter for his troops, Captain Guion erected a fort, to which he gave the name of Fort Adams, in honor of the then president. This fort was subsequently known as Fort Pickering. His movements after this are succinctly described in a private letter to a personal friend in North Carolina :
"Early in November, 1797, having left a sufficient garri- son to protect Fort Adams, which I had just completed, I left the Chickasaw Bluffs and descended the river to Fort Nogales, (now Vicksburg), then held by Spanish troops. Here I remained three days in my boats. I po- litely demanded possession in the name of the United States, and was politely refused. My hands were tied by positive orders to do nothing to displease the Dons, or to occasion 'a rupture,' or even 'a complaint,' so I made my bow and took my departure for Natchez, one hundred miles below, where I found Mr. Ellicott, United States Commissioner for running the boundary line, Lieutenants Pope and McCleary, and some forty or fifty men, who had been there a long time doing no good, but a great deal of harm. They had got the people, who before their arrival had dwelt together in amity, cut up into factions and very discontented.
"I found a Spanish garrison of some forty men, and two regular and one provincial officer. The late governor, Gayoso, having recently succeeded Carondelet as Governor- General of Louisiana, and transferred his headquarters to New Orleans, leaving the district of Natchez under the command of Captain Stephen Minor, a native of Penn- sylvania, Jong in the Spanish service. I encamped on a hill just one thousand yards from the Spanish fort, and the flags of two nations waved over the same district.
"On the 30th of March, 1798. the Spanish garrison evac- uated the fort, nothing having occurred since my arrival to interrupt our friendly relations.
"In a short time Ellicott, his assistants and escort, left Natchez, (very much to my satisfaction and to the satisfac-
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tion of the people), for a point on the river near Loftus Heights, where it is supposed they will find the point designated by treaty for a boundary, to-wit: the thirty- first degree of north latitude. This personage has re- mained here, very actively and profitably employed for himself, ever since February, 1797, sometimes exciting dissensions between private families ; at others endeavor- ing to spread a spirit of mutiny among the troops, or an insurrection among the inhabitants ; and at all times closely intent in making a good job out of the commis- sion, receiving at the rate of ten dollars a day fixed, while some days he made twenty."
A few days after the Spanish forces evacuated Natchez, the same ceremony was performed at the Walnut Hills, (now Vicksburg), where Fort Nogales was turned over to Major Kersey, who with a detachment of United States troops, took immediate possession.
During the interval between the retirement of the Span- ish authorities, and the establishment of a territorial gov- ernment by Congress, Captain Guion remained the princi- pal military and civil officer of the district, and from the concurrent testimony of citizens of the highest character, no better or more peaceful condition, no better order, with less of lawlessness and violence, had ever been main- tained before or since. This is a very high praise for Cap- tain Guion, but it is no more than he is entitled to. By his courtesy, good sense and discretion in the performance of his delicate and responsible duties, the American soldier won the respect, the confidence and the admiration of the Spanish officials with whom he was brought in contact, as well as of the entire body of the inhabitants of the dis- trict.
Referring to this condition of affairs, Claiborne indulges in the following remarks :
"There had been a recess or interregnum of government from the 30th of March, 1798, when the Spanish comman- dant and garrison left Natchez, until August 2d, when Governor Sargent arrived. But Major Guion, (he had been promoted to that rank) was present during the interval, with a battalion of United States troops, in the
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capacity of civil and military commander, in perfect har- mony with the citizens, and universal tranquility and order had prevailed through the entire district."
It is a matter of interest to know that Louis Phillipi, then the Duke of Orleans, who ascended the throne of France in 1830, was a visitor to Natchez for a brief period in February, 1798.
In a letter to Major Guion, from General Wilkinson, dated at Pittsburg, January 2d, 1798, the General says :
"I send this letter by the Marquis de Montjoy, an exiled noble of France, of high rank. He has been a professional soldier, and has greatly interested me with the details of his military life. He attends the Duke of Orleans, and his brothers, who are bound, as I understand, to New Orleans, to seek a passage to the Havana, from whence they go under convoy, to Spain, to join their mother who has es- caped to that kingdom. The conduct of the French baffles all speculation. They have gone from one excess to another, until they have thrown down every thing of law, of security, religion or principle, and have rendered infamous the name of republican. It appears to me that the genius of that nation, so brilliant in science and in war, is not at all adapted to regulated liberty, and that the convulsion will ultimately end in the restoration of royalty. In that case, when you receive this letter, you will probably see the future king of France. The Duke of Orleans is popular and a soldier. Fulfill your orders respecting for- eigners, and treat these wanderers, who are friendly, with hospitality and respect."
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