OHIO STATEWIDE FILES - HISTORY: Chapter 29 (Abbott, John S. C., 1875)
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			     Chapter XXIV
		            Blennerhassett
   
   Harmon Blennerhassett was born of a noble family, in Hampshire, England, 
in the year 1767. The residence of the wealthy family was at Castle Conway,
in the County of Kerry, Ireland. His parents were on a visit to England 
when this son was born. Harmon received a very thorough academic education
at the Westminster School in England, where he manifested unusual taste for
all classical studies. On leaving school he entered Trinity College, Dublin,
where in due time he graduated with distinguished honors. A brilliant career
seemed them opening before him. He was in the enjoyment of rank, wealth, 
and intellectual powers of a high order, richly cultivated. His personal 
appearance was unusually attractive and his manners prepossessing and winning.
Young Blennerhassett read law at the King's Inn Courts, in Dublin, and was
admitted to the bar in 1790. He, then, with a well filled purse, and in all
the vigor and enthusiasm of youth, undertook the tour of Europe. Upon his
return, he nominally assumed practice at the bar in Ireland. But being heir
to a large fortune, he was by no means solicitous of engaging in the drudgery 
of his profession. He devoted his time to the cultivation of his taste for
the sciences, music, and general liturature.
   In 1796 his father died. Harmon Blennerhassett, then twenty-nine years of
age, came into full possession of his fortune. Becoming involved in some 
political difficulties in Ireland, he sold his estate there and removed to
England. All his associations were with the highest of nobility. He soon
married Miss Margaret Agnew, daughter of Lieutenant Governor of the Isle-of-Man.
Lord Kingsale and Admiral de Courcey both married sisters of Mr. Blennerhassett.
His relatives and family connections were all staunch royalists, looking down
upon the demands for popular rights with aristocratic contempt. Mr. 
Blennerhassett, unfortunately for his worldly peace and prosperity, had imbibed
republican principles. This rendered his situation in England, in the high
circles in which only he moved, very uncomfortable. He finally concluded to
remove to the United States, where he could give utterance to his sentiments, 
undisturbed by the disdain and reproaches of his friends.
   Before leaving London he purchased a large library of classical and
scientific books, and also an extensive chemical and philosophical apparatus.
He also provided himself abundantly with everything which could contribute to
the luxurious enjoyment of a home in the new world. Taking ship, he landed
with his wife and some attendants in New York in the year 1797. He brought
letters which immediately introduced him to the first families in the city.
His wealth, rank and culture immediately gave him name and fame, and his
society was much courted.
   He spent several months in New York making inquiries respecting the most
attractive portions of the country in which to establish himself. He heard
much of the Beautiful River, its forests, its prairies, its rich soil, mild
climate and salubrious breezes. And particularly he heard of the luxuriant
Eden-like islands which adorned the majestic stream.
   In the rich autumnal weather of 1797 he crossed the mountains to Pittsburgh.
After spending a few weeks there, he took a large, flat-bottomed boat, richly
furnished, and floated down the Ohio to Marietta. Here he passed the Winter, 
making various explorations in search of the most beautiful spot he could
find for a permanent residence.
   Fourteen miles below the mouth of the Muskingum there was a very beautiful
island, nearly opposite the settlement of Belpre. This island, which was
singularly wild, lovely and romantic in its character, was within the 
jurisdiction of the State of Virginia. There he could hold slaves, as he
could not do in any portion of the Northwestern Territory. It is a little
remarkable, that this man who from love of republican principles had encountered
great loss, and had become an exile from his native land, should still wish
to have the men who worked for him, his property, rather than his hired
laborers.
   This island, as a residence, presented many great attractions. A few
acres were free from trees, presenting a natural lawn. He could have flocks
and herds without any danger of their straying into the wilderness. The
settlement of Belpre was composed chiefly of very intelligent and well
educated men. Their society would be instructive and attractive. The drooping
branches of the willow laved the waters which flowed gently by the island, 
and the gigantic elms and sycamores gave grandeur to the scenery, and
sheltered it from the ravages of storms.
   The island, which contained two hundred and ninety-seven acres, was of a
peculiar form, from being narrow in the middle and broad at both extremities.
Mr. Elijah Backus, of Norwich, Connecticut, purchased both of the islands in
the year 1792 for about nine hundred dollars, Virginia currency. In the year
1798 Mr. Blennerhassett purchased the upper half of the upper island for 
four thousand five hundred dollars. As there were one hundred and seventy
acres in his purchase, this would amount to about twenty-six dollars an acre.
   About a half mile below the upper end of the island there was a large 
block-house standing, which had been erected as a place of refuge during
the Indian wars. With his wife and one child Mr. Blennerhassett took
possession of this house, while he commenced, with a large number of workmen,
erecting an elegant mansion, and ornamenting the grounds with the taste he
had acquired in familiarity with the splendid estates of England.
   Very great labor was expended in removing trees and stumps, in smoothing
the lawn, and in preparing the grounds for the spacious buildings, and in
constructing landings on both sides of the island, for communication with the
Virginia and the Ohio shores. Beautiful boats of various sizes were procured, 
boat houses erected, and ten black servants were purchased, who were trained
to skill in the various employments of watermen, waiters, grooms and
gardeners. The outlays upon his buildings and grounds amounted to more than
forty thousand dollars in gold, an immense sum in those days. This large 
amount of money expended among the laborers and farmers of that region, was 
of immense benefit to them, and gave the most salutary impulse to improvements
in roads, buildings and agriculture. Mr. Blennerhassett was mild and gentlemanly
in all his intercourse with others, and was considered one of the greatest
public benefactors who had ever settled west of the Alleghenies.
   "The island mansion," writes Dr. S. P. Hildreth, "was built with great
taste and beauty. No expense was spared in its construction that could add
to its usefulness or splendor. It consisted of a main building, fifty-two
feet in length, thirty in width, and two stories high. Porticos, forty feet
in length, in the form of wings, projected in front, connected with offices, 
presenting each a face of twenty-six feet, and twenty feet in depth, uniting
them with the main building, forming the half of an ellipse, and making in 
the whole a front of one hundred and four feet. The lefthand office was
occupied for the servant's hall, and the right for the library, philosophical
apparatus and study. A handsome lawn of several acres occupied the front
ground, while an extended opening was made through the forest trees on the 
head of the island, affording a view of the river for several miles above, 
and bringing the mansion into the notice of descending boats. Nicely graveled
walks, with a carriage-way, led from the house to the pillars. A fine hedge
of native hawthorn bordered the right side of the avenue to the house, while
back of it lay the flower-garden, of about two acres, enclosed with neat
palings, to which were trained gooseberry bushes, peaches and other varieties
of fruitbearing trees, in the manner of wall fruits.
   "The garden was planted with flowering shrubs, both exotic and native, but
especially abounding in the latter, which the good taste of the occupants had
selected from the adjacent forests and walks, bordered with flowers, imitating
labyrinths. Arbors and grottoes, covered with honey-suckles and eglantines, 
were placed at convenient intervals, giving the whole a very romantic and 
beautiful appearance. On the opposite side of the house was a large kitchen
garden, and back of this orchards of peach and apple trees of the choicest
varieties, procured from abroad, as well as from the Belpre nurseries.
   "Lower down the island was the farm, with about one hundred acres under 
the nicest cultivation; the luxuriant soil producing the finest crops of grain
and grass. For the last three or four years of his residence, a large dairy
was added to his other agricultural pursuits, under the management of Thomas
Neal, who also superintended the labors of the farm. The garden was conducted
by Peter Taylor, a native of Lancashire, England, who was bred to the pursuit, 
but under the direction of Mr. Blennerhassett, whose fine taste in all that
was beautiful, ordered the arranging and laying out the grounds.
   "The mansion and offices were frame buildings, painted with the purest
white, contrasting tastefully with the green foliage of the ornamental shade
trees, which surrounded it. An abundance of fine stone for building could
have been quarried from the adjacent Virginia shore; but he preferred a 
structure of wood, as less liable to be damaged by earthquakes. The finishing
and furniture of the apartments were adapted to the use for which they were
intended. The hall was a spacious room, its walls painted a somber color, with
a beautiful cornice of plaster, bordered with a gilded moulding, running
around the lofty ceiling, while its furniture was rich and grand. The furniture
of the drawing-room was in strong contrast with that of the hall - light, airy 
and elegant, with splendid mirrors, gay colored carpets, rich curtains with
ornaments to correspond, arranged by his lady with the nicest taste and
harmonious effect. A large quanitity of massive silver plate ornamented the
side-boards, and decorated the tables. The whole establishment was noble, 
chastened by the pure taste, without that glare of tinsel finery too common
among the wealthy."
   Thus there arose, as by magic, amidst the wilds of the Ohio, one of the 
most elegant mansions of modern days. All its internal appliances and external
surroundings were of the most luxurious character. Mr. Blennerhassett's 
library contained a large and choice selection of the most valuable books.
With native powers of a high order, trained by an accomplished university
education, by foreign travel, and by intercourse with the most cultivated
men of his day, he well knew how to use that library for his constant profit
and for his unceasing delight.
   Skilled also in the sciences, and with a strong taste for chemical studies, 
and all the correlative branches of natural philosophy, such as astronomy, 
botany, electricity and galvanism, he had supplied his laboratory extensively
with the best apparatus for observation and experimentation which the arts
could furnish.
   Astronomy was a favorite study with this accomplished man. He had one of
the best of telescopes, well mounted, with which he pierced the transparent
skies of that region, in search of those wonderful revelations of distant
suns and firmaments which this grandest of sciences has made known to man.
He had also a solar microscope, of the then greatest magnifying power, with
which he was accustomed to explore that infinity of minuteness which is the
counterpart of the infinity of grandeur. This man of rare accomplishments
seems to have been an almost universal genius. His musical taste was exquisite;
he composed many beautiful airs, and played with unusual skill upon several
musical instruments, his favorites being the violocello and the violin. It
is said that the spacious hall of his mansion was construction with special
reference to its giving effect to musical sounds. His cultivated guests were
charmed with the exquisite tones which there vibrated upon their ears.
   The correlative sciences of electricity and galvanism engaged a large 
share of Mr. Blennerhassett's attention. He was constantly making experiments
and eliciting new facts in these wonderful branches of natural science. In
addition to these scientific accomplishments, he had made such attainments
in the classics, that it was said he could repeat the whole of Homer's Iliad
in the original Greek. In manners, Mr. Blennerhassett was very courteous, 
mild and yielding. His virtues were of the amiable character, rather than of 
the more stubborn. He was easily duped by the intriguing who had sufficient
sagacity to discern his weak points. His benevolence was unbounded, and his
sympathy with the sick and suffering very intense. Being conscious that in
his remote home in the New World he would have little access of skilled
medical attendance, he had paid very considerable attention to the study of
medicine, and had provided himself with an ample supply of the most approved
remedies for all sicknesses. He was ready freely to prescribe for his sick
neighbors and to administer to them of his medicines.
   It is said that one of his neighbors, to whom Mr. Blennerhassett had loaned
quite a sum of money, had his house and all his furniture consumed by fire.
The enterprising, industrious man was thus reduced to absolute poverty, 
with a heavy debt hanging over him. Soon after, Mr. Blennerhassett invited
the unfortunate man and his wife to dine at his table. After dinner he took
his guests into his study, and told him that he would either cancel the debt, 
or he might let it stand, and he would make him a free gift of an order to 
the same amount on a store in Marietta. The honorable but unfortunate man
preferred to commence his new struggle with adversity, free from all 
hinderances of pecuniary obligation. He therefore gratefully accepted the
cancelling of the debt.
   Mr. Blennerhassett was very fond of hunting. Quails and other small game
abounded on the island. As he was quite nearsighted, his wife frequently
accompanied him in these short excursions. Her quick eye would search out 
the game to which she would direct the attention of her husband. Mr.
Blennerhassett was direct in his tastes, and generally sedentary in his 
habits. He had no fondness for carousals or any riotous pleasures. But he 
greatly enjoyed the society of the cultivated guests, who in large numbers 
were allured to his hospitable mansion. He usually dressed in the old English
style. His coat was of blue broadcloth, with gild buttons. He wore invariably
buff-colored or scarlet small clothes and silk stockings. Large silver buckles,
highly polished, fastened his shoes.
   "In this quiet retreat," writes Mr. Hildreth, "insulated and separated 
from the noise and tumult of the surrounding world, amidst his books, with
the company of his accomplished wife and children, he possessed all that 
seemed necessary for the happiness of man; and yet he lacked one thing, 
without which no man can be happy - a firm belief in the overruling providence
of God. Voltaire and Rousseau, whose works he studied and admired, had poisoned
his mind to the simple truths of the Gospel, and the Bible was a book which
he seldom or never consulted. At least this was the fact while he lived on
the Island, whatever it might have been after misfortune and want had humbled
and sorely tried him."
   Mrs. Blennerhassett, whose maiden name was Margaret Agnew, was in disposition
far more ambitious and aspiring than her husband. It was a great trial to
her to have him waste his brilliant powers in obscurity. She had heard him in 
several of his public addresses, and often declaring that in forensic eloquence
he was not surpassed by the ablest orators of the day. Vainly she urged him
to enter as an advocate the higher courts of Virginia and Ohio. Mrs.
Blennerhassett was in all respects a very accomplished lady. Her figure, tall
and commanding, was moulded in the most perfect proportions. Her features, 
over which was spread a most brilliant complexion, were beautiful. A strong
grace which intelligence alone can confer. Brown hair, profuse and glossy, 
dark blue eyes, and manners both winning and graceful, ever attracted attention
to her, even in the most brilliant circles. She was very charitable to the 
sick and the poor in her neighborhood, often carrying to them those little
delicacies which could nowhere else be obtained. She had been brought up by
two maiden aunts, who had taken great care to instruct her in all the useful
arts of housewifery, which education she found to be of inestimable value in
her new home.
   She invariably dressed like a lady, in the most elegant manner. Her ordinary
costume consisted of a turban, folded very full, in the Eastern style. It
was of rich silk, sometimes white, which was her favorite color in Summer, 
but in Winter pink or yellow. A very intelligent lady, who was familiar with
society in Washington, and had visited in the courts of Europe, writes:
   "When she rode on horseback," writes Mr. Hildreth, "her dress was of fine 
scarlet broadcloth, ornamented with gold buttons; a white beaver hat, on which
floated the graceful plumes of the ostrich, of the same color. This was sometimes
changed for blue or yellow, with feathers to harmonize. She was a perfect
equestrienne; always riding a very spirited horse, with rich trappings, who
seemed proud of his burden. She accomplished the ride to Marietta, of fourteen
miles, in about two hours; dashing through and under the dark foliage of the 
forest trees, which then covered the greater part of the distance, reminding
one of the gay plumage and rapid flight of some tropical bird winging its
way through the woods.
   "In these journeys she was generally accompanied by Ransom, a favorite
black servant, who followed on horseback, in a neat showy dress, and had to 
apply both whip and spur to keep in sight of his mistress. She sometimes come
to Marietta by water, in a light canoe, navigated by Moses, another of the
colored servants, who was the principal waterman. The shopping visits were
made in this way, as she directed the purchase of groceries and clothing
for the family use. The roads were not yet open for wheel carriages. She 
possessed great personal activity, sometimes choosing to walk that distance
instead of riding.
   "Mrs. Blennerhassett was very domestic in her habits, being not only
accomplished in all the arts of housewifery, but being also an excellent 
seamstress, cutting and making with her own hands much of the clothing of
her husband, as well as preparing that of the servants, which was then made
by a colored female. At that period, when tailors and mantua-makers were
rare in the western wilderness, this was an accomplishment of real value. 
She being willing to practice these servile acts, when surrounded by all the
wealth she could desire, is one of the finest and most remarkable traits in
her character, indicating a noble mind, elevated above the influence of 
that pride so often seen to attend the high-born and wealthy.
   "She was an early riser; and when not prevented by indisposition, visited
the kitchen by early dawn, and often manipulated the pastry and cakes to be
served upon the table for the day. When this service was completed she laid
aside her working-dress and attired herself in the habiliments of the lady
of the mansion. At table she presided with grace and dignity, and by her
cheerful conversation and pleasant address set every one at ease about her, 
however rustic their manners or unaccustomed they might be to genteel society.
   "Her mind was as highly cultivated as her person. She was an accomplished
Italian and French scholar, and one of the finest readers imaginable. She
especially excelled in the plays of Shakspeare, which she rehearsed with all
the taste and spirit of a first-rate actor. In history and the English classics
she was equally well read, and was often called to decide disputed points
in literature under discussion by her husband and some learned guest. Few
women ever lived who combined so many accomplishments and personal attractions.
They strongly impressed not only intellectual and cultivated minds who could
appreciate her merits, but also the uneducated and lower classes."
   Such was the home and such the surroundings of Herman Blennerhassett for
the first eight years, during which he reigned almost supreme in his little
island kingdom. During that time two additional children were born, to cheer
his home of opulence and taste. Parties of young people were often invited
from Belpre and Marietta to enjoy the hospitalities of this western Eden.
Sometimes they rode in long and joyous cavalcade through the woods, but more
generally they came down the river in light canoes and row-boats, propelled
by the lusty arms of the young men. The rich autumnal season of the year, 
when the brilliant moon illuminated the glorious scene, was generally selected
for these excursions. Rapidly the little fleet would descend the stream, 
arriving at the island in the early twilight. A rich entertainment there
awaited them.
   Then came games, music, songs, and the mazes of the dance. At midnight
they would commence their return home, striking the eddies of the majestic
stream, now upon the one shore and now upon the other; at one time beneath
the shadows of the gigantic forest, and again in the full radiance of that
luminary whose rays are so dear to the young and the happy. The shores of the
stream, which had so often resounded with the yells of the savage with his
war-whoop and his demonical carousings, as he danced around the fires where 
his captives were put to the torture, now the hearts of the young and the
innocent. It makes even an old man's blood move more swiftly in his veins to
contemplate the happiness which those young hearts must have enjoyed in those
hours of midnight and moolight on the "La Belle Riviere."
   Such are the joys of peace. There was then no fear of the bullet or the
tomahawk of the lurking savage. What a happy world might this have been if
the brotherhood which our Savior Jesus Christ enjoins had been practiced by
its inhabitants! Surely our Heavenly Father, who loved to see his children
happy, must have looked down complacently upon these innocent joys, if He 
could see in the hearts of the favored ones any sincere recognition of His
love and His laws. But where now are those youthful sons and daughters, who
three-quarters of a century ago made river and forest vocal with their songs?
They have all disappeared, like the mists of the river. What a vapor is life!
The only question in relation to them now of importance is, "Did they so live
as to secure a welcome to the Paradise of God on high?"
   There were frequently parties of the elder and more sedate portion of the
community. They were always invited to spend the night, and frequently to
remain for two or three days. The wildness of the primeval forest spreading
all around, with only here and there a spot indicating that it had been
pressed by the foot of man, and the rude log cabins which were then alone to
be found, contrast greatly magnified the elegance and luxury of this truly
beautiful mansion with its landscape adornings.
   There were then in that region no roads, no steamboats, no ferries, no
taverns. Every man rode his own horse, or provided himself with a boat. If
a family was descending the river, it was necessary to buy or build a 
flat-bottomed barge. This was but little more than a raft with protecting 
sides, put together with merely strength enough to float during the voyage.
When the boat arrived at its destination it was broken up, and the planks
or timber of which it was composed were used in constructing the cabin and
out-buildings of the emigrant.
   The only spot between Blennerhassett's Island and Marietta, which showed
any signs of civilization, was Belpre, or Beautiful Prairie. There was here 
a little settlement which had been commenced in the year 1789. It had been
of very slow growth, as the Indian wars for a time almost put a stop to
emigration. It had now, however, become quite a thriving and attractive
little village, having drawn to its fertile acres a population from the
eastern states of unusual intelligence and moral worth.
   Here there were now several well-built houses of hewn timber, with well-
cultivated farms and blooming orchards. There were several families who, 
though living in the most simple and frugal style, would have been ornaments
to society in any community. A gentleman who had often visited the mansion
during his early youth, when his parents resided in Marietta, writes:
   "I was not but a boy when Mr. and Mrs. Blennerhassett left the island;
but I had been a favorite in the family for years, and had passed many of my
happiest days in their society. My intimacy in their household is like an
oasis in the desert of life. It is one of those green spots in memory's waste
which death alone can obliterate."
   But Satan entered this Eden, and the ruin on this island was like that
which Eden experienced when Adam and Eve joined in the revolt of lost spirits
against their Maker.
   Aaron Burr was one of the most fascinating and one of the most totally
unprincipled men who ever trod this globe. Graceful in person, remarkably
handsome in features, with very high mental endowments, in possession of
conversational eloquence rarely if ever equaled, - he renounced entirely the
religion of Jesus and devoted himself to his own personal gratification and
aggrandizement, entirely reckless of the ruin and the misery which his 
selfishness might create. History affords no more impressive illustration of
an archangel ruined; of a man created with the highest endowments, who 
consecrated those endowments to the work of a fiend.
   Early in the present century Aaron Burr, disappointed in some of his 
ambitious plans, and having drawn upon himself the execration of his
countrymen for imbuing his hands in the blood of Alexander Hamilton, formed
the truly grand conception, and apparently the feasible one, of wresting
from Spain the majestic empire of Mexico, and of then wresting from the
United States the vast and almost unpopulated solitudes of the Ohio and
Mississippi Valleys. Here he would organize the most magnificent empire, in
point of territory, salubrity, fertility and variety of clime which has
existed on this globe. The Alleghenies would be his eastern boundary. The 
majestic cliffs of the Rocky Mountains would guard his western frontier. On 
the north would be the great lakes and the frigid zone; while the Gulf of
Mexico and the Carribean Sea would open to his southern ports the commerce
of the world. This vast realm, in magnitude almost surpassing the wildest
dreams of earthly ambition, would abound in the productions of all the zones.
Rivers of hitherto unknown grandeur, flowing from the north to the south, 
opened the whole of these almost boundless regions of the riches of internal
commerce. Of this empire Aaron Burr was to be - Imperator.
   Such were the dreams of this extraordinary man. Extravagent as they were, 
and totally as he failed in their accomplishment, that dream had been more
then realized in the wondrous republican empire of the United States.
    Aaron Burr had heard of Blennerhassett, of his wealth, of his vast influence
over the rapidly increasing population of Ohio, and of the surpassing charms
of his wife. Could he enlist them in his enterprise, it would be, indeed, 
a great acquisition. But it was necessary to proceed with the utmost caution.
Mr. Blennerhassett was not a man to be easily drawn into a treasonable 
conspiracy against a government whose institution he admired, and under whose
protection he had found so free and happy a home.
   In the year 1800, Thomas Jefferson was chosen President of the United States, 
and Aaron Burr, Vice President. This gave him national celebrity. At the 
next election, in 1804, though Jefferson was continued in office, Burr was 
superseded.
   In the Spring of the year 1805, Burr, disappointed and exasperated, visited
the Ohio Valley in prosecution of his grand enterprise. The arch intriguer
sought no letters of introduction to Blennerhassett, probably wishing it to
appear that it was merely by accident that he called at his mansion. Reaching
the river he took a boat, and descended the stream, landed at Blennerhassett
Island, as if, a passing traveler, he had been lured merely by curiousity, 
to stop and admire the beautiful grounds.
   Mr. Blennerhassett, sitting in his study, was informed by his servant that
there was a very gentlemanly, well-dressed man, who had just landed from his
boat, and was viewing the lawn. He directed the servant to go out and in his
master's name invite the gentleman into the house. Burr declined, with some
very courteous apology, but sent in his card. Mr. Blennerhassett upon reading
the name, and seeing that it was a former Vice President of the United States
who was visiting his grounds, immediately stepped out and insisted upon Mr.
Burr's partaking of the hospitality of his mansion.
   It is said that Satan can apparently transform himself into an angel of
light. Burr masked himself in his most resistless fascinations. Both host
and hostess were charmed with their guest. His eloquence was extraordinary, 
his imformation wonderful, and he manifested all the artlessness and simplicity
of a child. Familiar with all the secrets of the state, he spoke of the 
prospects of a war with Spain, and of the ease with which the Mexicans, with
a little aid, might throw off the intolerant and tyrannical foreign yoke and
establish an independent government like that of the United States. With
singular frankness he unfolded to them a very splended land speculation within
the Spanish territory, on the Red River, in which he was engaged, and showed
them how it was certain to bring on the most extraordinary pecuniary results.
This was the first step of the arch deceiver. Having taken it, he went on his
way.
   Mr. Blennerhassett, an unsuspecting man, and one who was easily duped, was
greatly excited by these grand schemes and revelations. There was nothing in
them to disturb in the slightest degree his patriotic devotion to the United
States. The next Winter Mr. and Mrs. Blennerhassett spent in New York and
Philadelphia. It is not probable that they were lured there by the hope of
having further interviews with Aaron Burr. Some correspondence had, in the
meantime, passed between them. In interviews during this Winter it is supposed
that they entered into a sort of partnership for land speculation.
   Blennerhassett agreed, as it afterwards appeared, to co-operate with Burr
in the purchase of a very large tract of land within the Spanish Territory, 
on the Washita River, an important tributary of the Red River. These very
rich lands, as they were supposed to be, were situated in the northeast
portion of the present State of Louisiana. They could be purchased for a very
small sum. Then, by encouraging emigration from Europe, and from the Atlantic
States, they could be sold at an enormous profit.
   All this was so plain. But the secret in Burr's mind, probably not yet 
divulged to Blennerhassett, was, that he could then provoke revolt from 
Spain, seize Mexico, annex the region of the United States west of the
Alleghenies, and establish a splendid empire. This hidden part of the plan
was treason. It was adroitly veiled by the projected land speculation.
   Burr's plan were thus far advancing very prosperously. In the Autumn of 
that year, 1805, he took his accomplished daughter, Mrs. Theodosia Alston, 
and made a visit of several days at Blennerhassett Island. Of course but 
little can be known of the conversations which took place during these long
hours of private intercourse.
   Colonel Burr then returned to Marietta, where he took up his residence, 
and engaged vigorously in operations for sending a large colony down the Ohio
and the Mississippi to his lands on the Washita. He made a contract for
building fifteen very large batteaux, in which to transport his settlers and 
their goods to their remote destination in the Spanish domain. Ten of these
flat-bottomed boats were forty feet long, ten feet wide, and two and a-half
feet deep. Five of them were fifty feet long. They were so constructed at 
each end as to be rowed or pushed either up or down the stream. Mr. Blennerhassett's
purse was called into requisition in those expensive movements. The boats
were to convey the emigrants, with food and all necessary household and 
farming utensils, with an ample supply of guns and ammunition. It was manifest
that these warlike weapons might be needed to repel hostile savages.
   One of these boats was much larger than the rest, and was fitted up with
very considerable elegance. It had a capacious cabin, tastefully decorated
with a fire-place and glass windows. This was designed for Mr. Blennerhassett
and family, who were to accompany the expedition. This fact has generally
been relied upon as evidence that Mr. Blennerhassett had no idea of the 
treasonable designs which Colonel Burr had formed against the United States.
   A keel boat was built, sixty feet long, which was loaded with bacon, pork,
flour, whisky, and other supplies. Among the provisions were several hundred
barrels of kiln-dried corn, ground into flour. Men on long marches were
usually supplied with such rations. The Indians had taught us that a soldier
might take a sack of this meal upon his back, and that one pint mixed with
a little water would afford a day's ration. Much of this corn was raised on
the island, and was dried in kilns which Mr. Blennerhassett had constructed
for that purpose. The batteaux were calculated to carry five hundred men.
Colonel Burr's energy had already engaged nearly that number. The little
colony was organized with military precision, for its leader was an accomplished
soldier. Each private was to receive the gift of one hundred acres of land.
The officers were still more liberally provided for. Each emigrant was 
required to provide himself only with a good rifle and blanket. The boats 
were to be ready by the 9th of December, and the expedition was immediately
to set out upon its adventerous voyage.