France, Nov. 22d, 1643, murdered by Duhaut in conspiracy with other
assassins, in Texas, on a branch of the Trinity, or of the Brazos,
Mar. 19th or 20th, 1687, was never at the mouth of the Rio Grande. La
Salle sailed from France with four vessels and about 280 persons, July
24th, 1684; three of the vessels sighted Florida Jan. 15th, 1685;
landed at St. Louis, later St. Bernard, now Matagorda, bay, in Feb.,
1685; one vessel sailed away in Mar., 1685, leaving La Salle with
about 180 adventurers or colonists. He founded Fort St. Louis at or
near present La Vaca, in Apr., 1685, giving a color of French claim
that did not entirely fade away till 1803, though the settlement
speedily aborted. The remainder of 1685 and the year 1686 were mainly
passed in fruitless wanderings and warrings in different directions,
with misery and disaster at every turn. La Salle's people dwindled
down to about 20 who were left at the fort, and 17 who started with
their leader, Jan. 7th, 1687, overland to Canada. This _verloren hoop_
included: La Salle; Father Jean Cavelier, his brother; their two
nephews, Moranget and Cavelier; Sieur de Maria, Friar Anastase Douay,
who afterward wrote of the journey, a witness of La Salle's death;
Joutel, a trusty soldier, whose account (pub. 1713) is to be preferred
to Douay's when the two differ; Teissier, a pilot, one of the
conspirators; Liotot, the surgeon, ditto; Hiens, a German
ex-buccanier, ditto; Duhaut, the actual assassin; Jean Archevêque, his
servant and accomplice; Saget, La Salle's servant; Nika, a Shawanoe
hunter; another Indian, and some other persons. This party had crossed
the Colorado and Brazos Mar. 15th, 1687. After a quarrel which arose
over some buffalo meat, in a detached party who were 6 m. away from La
Salle, Duhaut, Liotot, Hiens, and others conspired to kill Moranget;
Liotot brained him; Saget and Nika were also then and there killed. La
Salle left Joutel and others in their own camp and proceeded to the
scene of this tragedy, accompanied only by Father Douay, and an
Indian, Mar. 19th or 20th. On his approach, Duhaut shot him in the
head from ambush; Liotot and others mocked and buffeted his corpse.
Some time in May Duhaut was murdered by Hiens; at the same time Liotot
was murdered by one Ruter. Some survivors of this bloody expedition
reached Poste aux Arkansas in July. The colony left at Fort St. Louis
had been utterly extirpated by Indian massacre and dispersion of the
few survivors, before Apr. 22d, 1689, when the spot, void of all but
the dead there buried, was visited by a Spanish party under Don Alonzo
de Leon. See note 21, p. 560.
[IV'-47] For the several rivers about to be treated here, see the
itinerary, June 7th-29th, and notes there.
[IV'-48] This description of the Nachez, Angelina, and Toyac (Atoyac)
rivers agrees with the map, and with the misapprehension under which
Pike labored. As already indicated, note 18, p. 710, the three are
branches of one, which falls into the Gulf in the same bay with the
Sabine; but Pike cuts off the Nachez and Angelina from the Toyac and
turns them into the Trinity as branches of the latter, thus leaving
the Toyac alone to pursue the course all three should have taken
together.
[IV'-49] The reboso, with which the women muffle their faces, in a
characteristic manner perhaps traceable back to the Moors, or to the
wives of the prophet himself, is as indispensable an article of attire
as a fan. The Spaniards have a phrase _de reboso_, equivalent to the
Italian _in petto_, Latin _sub rosa_, to indicate secrecy, intrigue,
and the like. The reboso varies much in size, shape, color, texture,
price, and other qualities; and, according to one distinguished
author, it has various uses: "The church was crowded with women of all
conditions, and the horrid _reboso_, which the poor use for shawl,
bonnet, handkerchief, and spit-box, sent out an odor which the incense
from the altar failed to stifle," says Emory, Ex. Doc. 41, 30th Cong.,
1st Sess., 1848, p. 41. Some say that the large mobile lips of Mexican
señoras acquire their osculatory capacity by the habitual use of those
features in gesticulation as well as articulation; their hands and
arms being kept bundled up with their heads in that comprehensive
article of attire, they are obliged to use their lips for pointers.
[IV'-50] Humboldt, in his Personal Narrative, etc., p. xxii of the
Philada. ed. of 1815, takes express exception to these statistics, in
the following terms: "The numerous statistical data, which Mr. Pike
has collected in a country of the language of which he was ignorant,
are for the greater part very inaccurate. According to this author the
mint of Mexico coins every year 50 millions of piastres in silver, and
14 millions in gold; while it is proved by the tables annually printed
by order of the Court, and published in the Political Essay [of
Humboldt and Bonpland], that, the year in which the produce of the
mines was the most abundant, the coinage amounted only to 25,806,074
piastres in silver, and to 1,359,814 piastres in gold."
[IV'-51] Bernardo Galvez y Gallardo, viceroy of Mexico from June 16th,
1785, until his death at Tacubaya, Nov. 30th, 1786. He was b. at
Marcharavieja July 23d, 1746, was son of Mathias de Galvez, and had a
very eminent career as soldier and statesman.
CHAPTER V.
CORRESPONDENCE.[V'-1]
_Art. 1. Letter, Pike to Allencaster._ (_Orig. No. 8, pp. 69, 70._)
[TRANSLATION.]
SANTA FE, March 3d, 1807.
SIR:
On the arrival of your troops at my encampment, last month, under the
command of Lieutenant Don Ignacio Saltelo and Mr. Bartholomew, they
informed me that your Excellency had directed them to assure me that I
should be escorted through your dominions to the source of Red river,
as our being on the frontiers of your province gave cause to
suspicion. I conceived it more proper to comply with the request and
repair to Santa Fe, in order to explain to your Excellency any
circumstance which might appear extraordinary; but on my arrival here
I am informed by your Excellency that it is necessary for myself and
troops to pass by Chihuahua in the province of Biscay, more than 200
leagues out of my route. I have demanded of your Excellency to know if
we are to be considered as prisoners of war. You inform me that you do
not consider us in that light. Not to embarrass your Excellency with
many demands, I only request to receive it from under your hand, in
what manner I am to consider myself, and the orders for my passing
into the country; also, whether the expense of the voyage is to be
considered as defrayed by the government of Spain or of the United
States. Excuse my language, as I am not much accustomed to writing in
French, but your Excellency's having no person who understands English
obliges me to attempt that language.
I am, Sir, etc.,
[Signed] Z. M. PIKE.
_Art. 2. Certificate, Allencaster to Pike._ (_Orig. No. 9, p. 70._)
[TRANSLATION.]
SANTA FE, March 3d, 1807.
The first lieutenant of the Anglo-American troops, of the name of Z.
Montgomery Pike, with the party of soldiers under his command, having
been met with by the troops under my orders, at four days' journey
from the seat of government, in this province, which is under my
charge, he was required personally to appear, which he voluntarily
did; and, complying with the orders of the commanding-general of these
internal provinces, I bade the said lieutenant proceed on his march,
with his party, equipped with horses, provisions, and equipage, under
the charge of an officer and 60 men of our troops, with orders to
introduce him to the said commanding-general in the town of Chihuahua.
I permitted said party to carry their arms and ammunition, being
actuated by proper consideration, and in order to grant said
Anglo-American's petition.
I certify the foregoing contents to be accurate.
[Signed] JOACHIN RL. ALLENCASTER.
_Art. 3. Letter, Pike to Allencaster._ (_Orig. No. 10, p. 71._)
ST. FERNANDEZ, March 7th, 1807.
SIR:
On my arrival at this village, and meeting with Dr. Robinson, he
informed me he had acknowledged to Lieutenant Malgares to belong to my
party. As this acknowledgment, in fact, only interested himself, I am
constrained to explain to your Excellency my reasons for having denied
his connection with me. He marched from St. Louis with my detachment
as a volunteer, after having with much pain and solicitation obtained
permission from the general for that purpose. On our arrival on the
Rio del Norte, then supposed to be Red river, he left the party in
order to come to Santa Fe, with a view of obtaining information as to
trade, and collecting some debts due to persons in the Illinois. On
my being informed of his embarrassments, I conceived it would be
adding to them to acknowledge his having accompanied a military party
to the frontiers of the province, and conceived myself bound in honor
and friendship to conceal it; but his scorning any longer the disguise
he assumed has left me at liberty to make this acknowledgment to your
Excellency, which I hope will sufficiently exculpate me in the opinion
of every man of honor, and of the world, for having denied a fact when
I conceived the safety of a friend, in a foreign country, was
concerned in the event.
The above statement will be corroborated by General Wilkinson, and he
will be reclaimed by the United States as a citizen, agreeably to our
treaties with Spain regulating the intercourse, commerce, etc.,
between the two nations.
I felt disposed to enter into an expostulation with your Excellency,
as to the deception practiced on me by the officers who came out with
your invitation to enter the province; but will omit it, and only
request that my sergeant and party may be ordered to follow with all
possible dispatch, as he has all my astronomical instruments, and
clothing, except what I now wear.
I have found Lieutenant Malgares to be what you stated, a gentleman
and a soldier, and I sincerely wish the fortune of war may one day
enable me to show the gentlemen of the Spanish army with whom I have
had the honor of forming an acquaintance, with what gratitude I
appreciate their friendship and politeness, and none more highly than
your Excellency's.
With sincere, etc.,
[Signed] Z. M. PIKE.
_Art. 4. Letter, Pike to Salcedo. (Orig. No. 17, pp. 82, 83.)-
CHIHUAHUA, April 4th, 1807.
Sir:
I hope your Excellency may not attribute it to presumption or a
disposition to intrude, when I address you on a subject foreign to my
official duties, and on which I can only speak as an individual; for I
should feel myself wanting in humanity, and that attention which every
man owes to his fellow-creatures in distress, should I remain silent,
more especially when those who are compatriots, and some of them
former companions, are now in a strange country, languishing out their
days far from their friends and relations, with scarcely a dawn of
hope remaining of ever again being blessed with a view of their native
homes. It is scarcely necessary to add that I allude to the
unfortunate companions of [Captain Philip] Nolan, who, having entered
the territories of his Catholic Majesty in a clandestine manner,
equally in violation of the treaties between the two governments, the
laws of the United States, and those of Spain, could not be reclaimed
or noticed by their own country. Yet, from every information I have
received on the subject, the men of the party were innocent, believing
that Nolan had passports from the Spanish governor to carry on the
traffic of horses. I pretend not to justify the many irregularities of
their conduct since [they have been] in the Spanish dominions; but
hope that these may be viewed with an eye of clemency, as the men are
most of them very illiterate, possessing scarcely any part of an
education.
David Fero was formerly a subaltern in a company of infantry of the
United States commanded by my father at the time I served as a
volunteer, but left the service, as I have been informed, owing to
some irregularities of conduct. His having been once my companion
entitles him at present to my particular attention; yet I will here
mention to your Excellency a circumstance which may appear, if known,
in an unfavorable light, viz.: About 15 days past I was informed Fero
was in town, and that he desired to see me. I was extremely mortified
at receiving the information, as I conceived he must have left his
post in a clandestine manner; yet I could not find it in my heart to
refuse the interview, which I gave, but determined at the same time to
inform you of the circumstance, conceiving that you could not look on
it as a matter of much criminality. [Note 11, p. 660.]
But to conclude, I have to beg of your Excellency, if it be in your
power and consistent with the line of conduct you conceive proper to
pursue, to inform me if anything can be done toward restoring these
poor fellows to their liberty, friends, and country; and in a
particular manner I intercede for Fero. If it is out of the power of
the general to grant them leave to return to the United States, I beg
to know if there be any objection to my taking letters to their
fathers, wives, etc. I should not have addressed this letter to the
general, had I not conceived the fate of those men to be at his
disposal, as he had suffered one of them to join the service of his
Catholic Majesty; neither do I request the honor of any other than a
verbal reply, as I write in the character of an individual, not as an
officer of the United States.
I am, Sir,
With high consideration,
Your humble, obedient servant,
[Signed] Z. M. PIKE.
His Excellency,
GENERAL NIMESIO SALCEDO.
_Art. 5.[V'-2] Letter, Pike to Salcedo. (Orig. No. 11, p. 72.)-
CHIHUAHUA, April 6th, 1806 [_i. e._, 1807].
SIR:
Having been for near the space of a year absent from my country, the
probability of its yet being two or three months before I arrive in
the territory of the United States, and the necessity of passing
through some hundred leagues of foreign territory, with the distressed
situation of my troops, have induced me to apply to your Excellency
for a necessary supply of money. Any arrangement which may be
conceived proper for the remuneration I will cheerfully adopt, to pay
it either to the Spanish consul at New Orleans, or the ambassador of
his Catholic Majesty at Washington.
The sum which I conceive will answer the present purposes of myself
and troops is $1,000, for which I will give such vouchers as your
Excellency may conceive proper.
I have the honor to assure your Excellency
of my high respect, and
to be your obedient servant,
[Signed] Z. M. PIKE.
His Excellency,
GENERAL SALCEDO.
_Art. 6. Letter, Salcedo to Pike. (Orig. No. 12, p. 72.)-
[TRANSLATION.]
CHIHUAHUA, April 7th, 1807.
Acceding to the solicitation you have made in your letter of
yesterday, that from the royal treasury of this place there should be
delivered you one thousand dollars, which you say are necessary for
the accommodation of the troops of the United States of America which
you have under your charge, or whatsoever other sum you choose to
demand, and that the government of the said United States shall
refund the said sum to the Señor Marquis de Cassa Yrujo, I have
directed the formula of four corresponding and quadruplicate receipts
for you to sign.
God preserve you many years.
[Signed] NIMESIO SALCEDO.
For the 1st Lieutenant,
MONTGOMERY PIKE.
_Art. 7. Letter, Salcedo to Wilkinson. (Orig. No. 19, pp. 86, 87.)-
[Translation.]
CHIHUAHUA, April 8th, 1807.
EXCELLENT SIR:
On the 16th of February last, John Robinson appeared before the
governor of New Mexico, saying that he was a Frenchman, an inhabitant
of St. Louis, which place he left on the 15th of June last year, with
the view of going to the country of the Pananas [Pawnees], to make
recoveries [of certain debts]; that, having received information that
his debtors had directed their steps to said province [of New Mexico],
he had concluded to follow them, in company with 15 other persons, who
went for the purpose of hunting on the rivers of Arcs,[V'-3] Arkansaw,
and Colorado (Red river); that in the neighboring mountains of the two
last [named rivers] his company had left him, for which reason he saw
himself under the necessity of proceeding to the Yutas Indians
[Utes], to whom he exposed his situation, and who accordingly agreed
to conduct him [to Santa Fé].
On the 25th of the same month of February, at the distance of four
days' march from the town of Santa Fe, and nine leagues west of its
settlement, at the place called the Ojocaliente (Hot Spring), near the
confluence of Rio Grande del Norte (Great North river), and that known
under the name River [Rio] de los Conejos ([River] of Rabbits), a
detachment of the garrison of said province of New Mexico met
Montgomery Pike, first lieutenant of the infantry of the United
States, with eight men of the said infantry; who, on being given to
understand that he must be conducted to said town, consented to
accompany them. It was then settled that two of his [Pike's] men
should remain on the spot with half of his Catholic Majesty's
detachment, to wait for six others [of Pike's men] who had not yet
arrived; while he proceeded to the governor's, to whom he declared
that his being in that neighborhood was owing solely to his having
been lost, and having mistaken the Rio del Norte for the Colorado. But
this [Spanish] officer, in compliance with the orders of his superior
officer, forwarded the said first lieutenant [Pike], with the six men
of the American army and the above mentioned John Robinson, to this
capital.
They arrived here on the 2d instant, and said officer [Pike], on being
presented to me, laid before me, in the same manner as he had done to
the governor of Santa Fe, the papers relative to his mission, the
correspondence he had carried on with your Excellency since it
commenced, his journals, and note books.
Your Excellency is not ignorant of the repeated representations made
by the king's minister in the United States, and by the Marquis of
Cassa Calva while he was in Louisiana, summoning[V'-4] the American
government to carry into effect any projects of extending its
expeditions into territories unquestionably belonging to his Majesty.
You must therefore, without any further observations or remarks on my
part, be satisfied that the documents contain evident, unequivocal
proofs that an offense of magnitude has been committed against his
Majesty, and that every individual of this party ought to have been
considered as prisoners on the very spot. Notwithstanding such
substantial and well-grounded motives as would have warranted such a
measure, also wishing to give the widest latitude to the subsisting
system of harmony and good understanding, and, above all, being
finally persuaded that your Excellency would take such steps as your
judgment might suggest as best calculated to prevent any bad
consequences on the occasion, I have concluded to keep in this general
government all the papers presented by Lieutenant Pike, and to give
him and his men full liberty to return to your Excellency, after
having treated them with attention, and offered them every assistance
they stood in need of.
I am, without reserve, and beyond expression, your most obedient,
humble, respectful, and faithful servant, who prayeth God may preserve
your Excellency many years.
[Signed] SALCEDO.
GENERAL JAMES WILKINSON.
_Art. 8. Inventory and Certificate, Valasco and Walker to Pike. (Orig.
No. 16, pp. 80-82.)-
[TRANSLATION.]
Inventory of papers which [from] the lieutenant of infantry of the
United States of America, Montgomery Pike, in the superior government,
and [by the] commandant general of the internal provinces of New
Spain, [were taken] as belonging to a voyage which he executed from
St. Louis up [of] the Illinois to the population [settlements] of New
Mexico, to visit the Indian nations, and reconnoiter the country and
intermediate rivers, as it appears his expedition was undertaken by
provision of the government of the said United States and the orders
of General Wilkinson:
1. Letter from General Wilkinson to Pike, dated 24th June, 1806.
2. Another from the same to Pike, 18th July, 1806.
3. Another from the same to the same officer, 19th July, 1806.
4. Another from the same to Pike, dated 6th August, 1806.
5. Letter from Lieutenant Wilkinson to his father, 27th October, 1806.
6. Another from the same to the same, 28th October, 1806.
7. Letter from Pike to General Wilkinson, 22d July, 1806.
8. Letter from Lieutenant Wilkinson to Lieutenant Pike, 26th October,
1806.
9. Proclamation of General Wilkinson, prohibiting any citizen of the
United States from trading with the Indian nations without his
permission or that of the government, dated 10th July, 1805.
10. A letter from Charles Junot, Agent for the Indians, to General
Wilkinson, dated 10th July, 1806.
11. Notes of Lieutenant Pike on the voyage from New Mexico to
Chihuahua, of four pages.
12. A rough manuscript [draught] of the Missouri and Osage rivers.
13. Letter from Sergeant Ballenger to General Wilkinson, without
date.
14. Letter from Lieutenant Wilkinson to Pike, without date.
15. A certificate, in the French language, of a certain Baptist Lamie
[note 44, p. 388] found among those nations, specifying his motive
for being there.
16. A bundle of papers, in the French language, which contain notes on
the harangues and manifestoes which Lieutenant Pike delivered to the
Indian nations.
17. A passport of Lieutenant Pike to the Indian Winapicane, a captain
of the little Osage.
18. A small draught or map of the country which is situated between
the Mississippi and Santa Fe, with a description of that town, and of
having met with 3,000 Camanches.
19. A book, 8vo, manuscript, which contains the diary of Lieutenant
Pike, from January, 1807, to the 2d March of the same year, when he
arrived at Santa Fe, in 75 pages.
20. A book, 4to, manuscript, in pasteboard, with copies of letters to
the secretary of war and General Wilkinson, and various observations
relative to the commission of the lieutenant, in 67 pages.
21. A manuscript book, in folio, containing different plans of
countries, etc., with a diary with rhumbs, distances, and worked
observations and meteorological tables, which arose from a revisal of
the voyage, by the said Lieutenant Pike, in 40 pages.
Don Francisco Valasco, first officer of the secretaries of the
commandant-generalship of the internal provinces of New Spain, and
Juan Pedro Walker Alferez,[V'-5] of the company of horse of the royal
presidio of Janos:
We certify that the lieutenant of American infantry, Montgomery Pike,
when presented to the commandant general of the before mentioned
provinces, Don Nimesio Salcedo, likewise produced a small trunk which
he brought with him;[*] and that, in the presence of the
undersigned, [he] opened [it] himself, and took out different books
and papers; when, having separated with his own hands, under our
cognizance, all that appeared to be, or that he said was, private, or
had no connection with the voyage, [he] delivered the remainder to the
demand of the commandant general, which [papers delivered] were solely
those comprehended in the foregoing inventory which we have formed,
and for the verification of which we have signed these presents at
Chihuahua, the 8th of April, 1807.
[Signed] FRANCISCO VALASCO.
JUAN PEDRO WALKER.
[*] The want of candor exhibited in the certificate is manifest. It
was an imbecile attempt to show that all my actions were voluntary,
and that in the delivery of my papers there was no degree of
constraint. [Orig. note.]
_Art. 9. Letter, Pike to Salcedo. (Orig. No. 14, pp. 78, 79.)-
CHIHUAHUA, April 14th, 1807.
SIR:
On my marching from Santa Fe, Governor Allencaster informed me that my
papers would be considered as a sacred deposit until my arrival at
this place, when your Excellency would examine and take them into
consideration.
When they were examined and taken possession of, I explained without
disguise the nature and contents of each, conceiving that those only
which had any relation to the object of my expedition could be
interesting, and that merely a copy of the chart and a translation of
the official papers would be taken. You must be conscious, Sir, that
it was in my power to have secreted or destroyed every trace of my
voyage and plans previous to my arrival at Chihuahua; but, resting
satisfied that no rupture had taken place between his Catholic Majesty
and the States I have the honor to serve, which would have been a
justification for the seizure of my papers, I preferred leaving them
_in statu quo_, to using that duplicity which in some degree always
implicates the character of a military man.
Admitting the country which I explored to be contested between the
two governments, each would naturally wish to gain some information as
to its geographical situation, in order that they might each form
correct ideas as to what would be their mutual interests, founded on
justice and the honor and dignity of the nation, in forming the line
of demarcation. This was the view of the United States government in
the expedition which I had the honor to command; the loss of the
geographical sketches taken might be the occasion of a suspension of
the final line of limits, and consequently the delay of an amicable
adjustment of the differences now existing between the two
governments.
Your Excellency may not have an intention of detaining my papers,
which I had begun to suppose from your returning only part of them by
Lieutenant Walker; in which case you will please to excuse this
intrusion. But I will add that, if you have it in view to detain the
papers, I request you will be pleased to examine them with particular
care. You will find that there are letters from General Wilkinson, as
well as his son, to me; also, from the latter to his father and
mother; and others which, being by no means of a political nature, or
at least not relative to the relations existing between the government
of Spain and the United States, therefore can by no means be
interesting to your Excellency. The book which contains my charts also
contains part of the blotters of a voyage to the source of the
Mississippi, which I presume cannot be interesting to the Spanish
government.
But, to conclude, I have only to request of your Excellency to know if
it is your intention to detain my papers now in your possession; and
if so, that you may cause me to be furnished, or suffer me to take, a
copy of them, and that I may receive a certificate from under your
hand of the number, nature, etc., of the said papers, and the reasons
for their seizure and detention, in order that my government may be
enabled to make the proper application to the Spanish court for an
explanation. My reason for applying to your Excellency so early on
this subject is that, on the arrival of my men who are still in the
rear, I may be prepared to march in a short period of time; for, under
the present aspect of affairs, I feel conscious that I am as anxious
to arrive on the territories of the United States as your Excellency
must be for me to quit the dominions of his Catholic Majesty.
In all events, I hope you will believe me to be, with the highest
sentiments of personal respect,
Your most obedient servant,
[Signed] Z. M. PIKE.
His Excellency, Brigadier-general Don Nimesio Salcedo,
Commanding-general of the Interior Provinces of the kingdom
of New Spain.
_Art. 10. Letter, Pike to Wilkinson. (Orig. No. 3, pp. 53-55.)-
CHIHUAHUA, April 20th, 1807.
MY DEAR GENERAL:
Never did I sit down to address you with a heart so oppressed with
anxiety and mortification; but knowing the uncertainty which must
exist as to the fate of myself and party, I conceive it proper to
attempt a communication, although I think it extremely uncertain,
owing to the difficulty of the route, whether it may ever come to
hand, or at least, previous to my arrival at the territories of the
United States, owing to the various circumstances which are not to be
communicated in a letter. I was detained in the mountains of Mexico
[_i. e._, present State of Colorado] until the month of January, and
in February found myself with eight of my party only, on the head
branches of the Rio [Grande] del Norte, which I then conceived to be
the sources of the Red river, our information making the latter extend
the whole distance between the former and the Arkansaw, although its
sources are some hundred miles below either of the others.
Here I was encountered by two officers and 100 men, who bore orders
from the governor of New Mexico to cause me and my party to march to
the capital of said province. His request was in the most polite
style, and in fact the commanding officer assured me there was not the
least constraint, but that his Excellency desired a conference, and
that I should be conducted by the most direct route to the navigable
part of the Red river, whence I could immediately descend to
Nachitoches. Although dubious of the faith of the invitation, and in a
situation where I could have defended myself as long as my provision
lasted, or until I might probably have escaped in the night; yet,
knowing the pacific intentions of our government, and the particular
instructions of my general as to my conduct in case of a rencounter
with a body of Spanish troops, I conceived it most proper to comply
with the demand and repair to Santa Fe; and, as the balance of my
party who remained in the mountains were, many of them, invalids and
not in a situation to be able to return, I conceived it most proper to
leave orders for them to follow, accompanied by an escort of Spanish
troops left for that purpose.
On my arrival in Santa Fe, his Excellency Governor Allencaster
informed me it was necessary that I should immediately march to
Chihuahua, Province of Biscay, in order to present myself to his
Excellency, Commandant-general N. Salcedo, for further orders. This
being so different from what I had been taught to expect, I demanded
of Governor Allencaster, in a written communication, to know if I were
to consider myself and party as prisoners of war. He replied in the
negative. We marched on the following day, and arrived on the 2d
instant at this place, whence, I am informed by the general, I shall
march, on the arrival of the remainder of my party, for Nachitoches.
I must here acknowledge myself and party under infinite obligations to
the friendship and politeness of all the Spanish officers, and in a
particular manner to the commandant-general of those provinces.
Should the politics of our country make it necessary to augment the
army previous to my arrival, I hope the general will approve of my
aspiring to a considerable promotion in the new corps. Should the line
of demarcation be amicably adjusted between the United States and
Spain, I hope to obtain the appointment of one of the commissioners,
as I make bold to assert that, with respect to the arrangements
necessary, and knowledge of the country through which the line must
pass, I am better instructed than any other officer of my age in our
service; and, if joined to a colleague of profound astronomical
knowledge, we could surmount every difficulty. I likewise beg leave to
suggest to your Excellency that I conceive the information I hold to
be of considerable consequence in the determination of the line of
limits, and that if it be not already determined I can throw
considerable light on the subject.
I hope your Excellency will be pleased to forward orders for me to
Nachitoches, informing me if I am to descend to [New] Orleans or
proceed to the Federal City; and if the latter, permitting me to pass
by Louisiana, in order to visit and arrange the affairs of my family,
to whom I beg the favor of my general to communicate the certainty of
the existence of myself and Dr. Robinson, who begs to be sincerely
remembered to you.
Please to present my respectful compliments to your lady; and the
doctor's and mine to James [Lieutenant Wilkinson], who, I hope, has
long ere this arrived in safety.
The general will pardon the requests I have made of him, knowing the
confidence of my heart in the paternal and soldierly esteem which he
has manifested for him who has the honor to be,
With every sentiment of esteem,
Respect, and high consideration,
Dear General,
Your obedient humble servant,
[Signed] Z. M. PIKE.
His Excellency,
GENERAL WILKINSON.
_Art. 11. Letter, Salcedo to Pike. (Orig. No. 15, pp. 79, 80.)-
[TRANSLATION.]
CHIHUAHUA, April 23d, 1807.
Of the papers connected with the expedition which by orders of the
United States government you have made from the St. Louis of the
Illinois unto the settlements of New Mexico, and which you
yourself[*] separated from those [others] which you brought here
and put into my hands the day you arrived in this town, there have
been formed an inventory, and a certificate respecting each of them
accompanying it, to you, and in the office, the 17th current, for the
purpose therein expressed, the judgment on which remains for the
decision of the king, my lord, and shall be reported in the secret
archives of this captain-generalcy. Meditating that you have
indicated, in your official summons to this government, the greatest
desire to arrive at the territories of the United States, [I] have
resolved that you prepare to continue your voyage in two or three
days, in consequence of which the arrangements necessary shall be
made, such as you, with the people of your expedition, have
experienced until your arrival at this place.
God preserve you many years.
[Signed] NIMESIO SALCEDO.
MONTGOMERY PIKE, 1st Lieutenant of Infantry.
[*] See my account of the seizure of my papers, April 1st, 1807.
[Orig. note. Read Apr. 2d, and see p. 658.]
_Art. 12. Letter, Wilkinson to Pike. (Orig. No. 4, pp. 55-57.)-
NEW ORLEANS, May 20th, 1807.
DEAR SIR:
After having counted you among the dead, I was most agreeably
surprised to find, by a letter from General Salcedo, received a few
days since, that you were in his possession, and that he proposed
sending you, with your party, to our frontier post. I lament that you
should lose your papers, but shall rely much on your memory. Although
it was unfortunate that you should have headed Red river, and missed
the object of your enterprise, yet I promise myself that the route
over which you have passed will afford some interesting scenes, as
well to the statesman as the philosopher.
You will hear of the scenes in which I have been engaged, and may be
informed that the traitors whose infamous designs against the
constitution and government of our country I have detected, exposed,
and destroyed, are vainly attempting to explain their own conduct by
inculpating me. Among other devices, they have asserted that your and
Lieutenant Wilkinson's enterprise was a premeditated co-operation with
[Aaron] Burr. Being on the wing for Richmond, in Virginia, to confront
the arch-traitor and his host of advocates, I have not leisure to
commune with you as amply as I could desire. Let it then suffice for
me to say to you, that of the information you have acquired, and the
observations you have made, you must be cautious, extremely cautious,
how you breathe a word; because publicity may excite a spirit of
adventure adverse to the interests of our government, or injurious to
the maturation of those plans which may hereafter be found necessary
and justifiable by the government.
I leave Colonel Cushing[V'-6] in command of the district, with plenary
powers, and have informed him that you have leave to repair to St.
Louis by the most direct route, the moment you have communicated to me
in duplicate the result of your travels, voluntary and involuntary,
in relation to clime, country, population, arts, agriculture, routes,
distances, and military defense. The president will be impatient to
have whatever you have acquired; to the detailed account a sketch must
be added, and the original and duplicate addressed to me at the city
of Washington, with the least possible delay. You may make up your
report at Natchitoches, and proceed thence to the Wascheta [Washita]
and thence to the Arkansaw, or you may descend to Fort Adams, and
proceed thence to St. Louis by the most convenient route. Colonel
Cushing, whom I leave in command of the district, has my orders in
your favor, and will give you every indulgence; but as an expedition
is now in motion up the Arkansaw, to explore it to its source and
further northwest, it is highly important that you should, either in
person or by two or three confidential men, send forward to the
Arkansaw every information which you may deem essential to the success
of the enterprise. A Mr. Freemen [Thomas Freeman], under the chief
direction of Mr. [William] Dunbar of Natchez, has control of this
operation. The escort, which consists of 35 select non-commissioned
officers and privates, is commanded by Lieutenant Wilkinson, seconded
by Lieutenant T[homas]. A. Smith. This detachment, with two boats
suitably equipped, will reach Natchez in eight or ten days from the
present, and will proceed with all possible dispatch. You will address
your communications to Lieutenant Wilkinson, who, after many hardships
and difficulties, reached this place about the 1st of March. He has
finished a pretty good traverse of the river, and his journal is
interesting. I think the present party will winter near the Arkansaw
Osages, about 600 miles by the river from the Mississippi.
The president mentioned you and your explorations to the source of the
great river, in his address to Congress, in handsome terms. I am
convinced he has a proper sense of your merits, and will do you ample
justice. I offer you leave to go immediately to your family, because I
apprehend it will be most desirable; yet, if you possess in your
information aught which you may desire to communicate in person, you
are at liberty to proceed, by the shortest route, to the seat of
government, near which you will find me, if alive, three or four
months hence.
I pray you to attend particularly to the injunctions of this hasty
letter, and to believe me, whilst I am your general,
Your friend,
[Signed] JAMES WILKINSON.
CAPTAIN PIKE, U. S. Army.
_Art. 13. Letter, Pike to Wilkinson. (Orig. No. 5, pp. 57-63.)-
NACHITOCHES, July 5th, 1807.
DEAR GENERAL:
Once more I address you from the land of freedom and under the banners
of our country. Your esteemed favor of the 20th of May now lies before
me, in which I recognize the sentiments of my general and friend, and
will endeavor, as far as my limited abilities permit, to do justice to
the spirit of your instructions.
I must premise to your Excellency that my letter of the 20th of April,
dated at Chihuahua, went through a perusal by General Salcedo,
previous to his forwarding it.
That letter stated the mode of my being brought into Santa Fe, and I
will now state to your Excellency the proceedings on the subject of my
papers. I will omit the hauteur of the reception given me by Governor
Allencaster, for a more particular communication; it changed afterward
to extreme politeness. Being under no restrictions previous to
arriving at Santa Fe, I had secreted all my papers which I conceived
it necessary to preserve, leaving my book of charts, my orders, and
such others as should induce the governor to know me in my proper
character, and prevent his suspicions being excited to a stricter
inquiry.
On examining my commission, orders, etc., he told me to remove my
trunk to my own quarters, and that on the morrow he would converse
with me on the subject. I had caused my men to secrete my papers about
their bodies, conceiving this safer than [leaving them] in the
baggage; but in the evening, finding the ladies of Santa Fe were
treating them to wine, etc., I was apprehensive their intemperance
might discover the secret, and took them from all but one, who had my
journal in full, but who could not be found, and put them in my trunk,
conceiving that the inspection was over. But next morning an officer,
with two men, waited on me and informed me that he had come for me to
visit the governor, and brought these two men to take up my trunk. I
immediately perceived I was outgeneraled. On my arrival at the
governor's house, his Excellency demanded if I had the key. My reply
was in the affirmative; when he observed, "It is well"; my trunk
should be a sacred deposit in the charge of the officer who would
escort me to Chihuahua, for which place I marched after dinner, under
the escort of Lieutenant Don Facundo Malgares and 65 men. His
character I beg leave to introduce to the attention of your Excellency
as that of a European possessing all the high sense of honor which
formerly so evidently distinguished his nation, the commandant of the
600 troops who made the expedition to the Pawnees, an officer of
distinguished merit, who in his mode of living fully justified the
pomp and style of his actions, who outshines many of the governors of
provinces, and whom in my future reports I shall have frequent
occasion to quote. He observed to me: "The governor informs me, Sir,
your trunk is under restrictions; but your word of honor as a soldier
that no papers shall be taken out, and you have free ingress, as
usual." I gave it, and I presume it is scarcely necessary to add it
was religiously adhered to.
On our arrival at Chihuahua the general demanded my trunk, and on its
being opened and the papers laid on the table, he took them in hand
one by one and demanded what was the purport of each, which truth
obliged me to declare; had I been disposed to equivocate, Ensign
Walker, of his Catholic Majesty's service, who stood present and
assisted in the examination, could have immediately detected the
fraud; also, his Excellency understands sufficient of the English
language to discover the general purport of any paper.
After going through them in this manner and separating them into two
piles, he observed to me: "You will leave those papers for my
inspection, and in the meanwhile, in concert with Ensign Walker, who
will give the Spanish translation, you will give me a detailed account
of your route, views, destination, etc., during which time I will
examine the papers now before me." With this I complied, flattering
myself that it was his intention to return me my papers, by his
demanding a sketch; also, so great was my confidence in the
all-protecting name of my country, I conceived it was a greater step
than the general would venture to take, to seize on the papers. But
when I had finished the proposed sketch and presented it, and found a
still further delay, I addressed the general on the subject. After a
few days, some were returned, but I was officially informed that the
remaining papers had been seized, but would be kept in the secret
cabinet of that captain-generalship until the pleasure of his Catholic
Majesty should be known. At the same time I was presented with a
certificate specifying the number and contents of those detained, and
adding that they were assorted by my own hand, and voluntarily. This
assertion was so contrary to truth, honor, or the line of conduct a
general should have pursued with a young gentleman, that I took the
liberty of telling one of the officers who signed said certificate
that it was incorrect. But as Sergeant Meek was still in the rear with
nearly all my baggage, I took care to give him orders that none of
said baggage should be opened, except by force; which will evince
that, although I preferred acting like a gentleman to obliging General
Salcedo to resort to rough treatment, yet that it was not a volunteer
surrender of my papers.
But the general will please to recollect that my journals were saved
at Santa Fe, were continued, and are entire to this post; for the
fortunate circumstance of the doctor's having copied my courses and
distances through all the route, except an excursion we made to the
source of the river La Platte, unto the Spanish territories, preserved
them. These will enable me to exhibit a correct chart of the route,
although not so minute as the one seized on, which was plotted daily
by the eye and angular observations. Thus the only essential papers
lost were my astronomical observations and meteorological tables, and
a book containing remarks on minerals, plants, etc., with the manners,
population, customs, etc., of the savages. But the results of the
former were in part communicated, and probably my journal may supply
part of the balance, while our memories will make the loss of the
latter of but little consequence. While in the Spanish territories I
was forbidden the use of pen and paper, notwithstanding which I kept a
journal, made meteorological observations, and took courses and
distances from the time I entered their country until my arrival at
this place; all of which I brought safe off in the men's guns, where I
finally secreted my papers without detection.
From our unremitting attention day and night, the immense territory
they led us through, and the long time we were in their country, I
make bold to assert I have been able to collect a correct account of
their military force, regular and irregular; also, important and
interesting information on geographical situations, political
sentiments and dispositions of the people of every class, manners,
arts, resources, riches, revenues, situation, value, and productions
of their mines, etc.; also, the annual revenues paid to Bonaparte. Had
we possessed as great a knowledge of the Spanish language when we
entered the territories as when we left them, our information would
have been nearly as complete as I could wish it, if sent expressly for
the purpose of acquiring it, by the open authority of his Majesty.
But the French language, in which my communications were sometimes
made, was greatly beneficial.
By the sergeant, who is still in the rear and was never suffered to
join me, as General Salcedo conceived he would probably procure some
information from him, which he could not if [the sergeant were]
immediately under my orders, I expect many other communications of
importance from many individuals who promised to forward them by him.
But I presume the general has found himself in error; as I perceive by
a letter from him to Governor Cordero, the sergeant killed one of
his[V'-7] men, in consequence of some improper conduct, and the
general accuses him of great intractability, as he is pleased to term
it.
From the foregoing statement your Excellency will observe that I yet
possess immense matter, the results of one year's travel in countries,
desert and populated, which have both been long the subject of
curiosity to the philosopher, the anxious desires of the miser, and
the waking thoughts and sleeping dreams of the man of ambitious and
aspiring soul--results which, in our present critical situation, I do
conceive to be immensely important, and which open a scene for the
generosity and aggrandizement of our country, with a wide and splendid
field for harvests of honor for individuals. But my papers are in a
mutilated state, from the absolute necessity I was under to write on
small pieces in the Spanish country; also, from being injured in the
gun-barrels, some of which I filed off three times to take out the
papers. These circumstances make it necessary, in the first place, to
take a rough copy as they stand; then it will be necessary to assort
the matter, as military, political, moral, mercantile, meteorological,
agricultural, etc., all now forming an undigested mass. Then, Sir, the
combining each, the plotting, etc., would take up a time of
considerable extent for one man; and to make duplicates after they are
in order could not be done in three months. The general may recollect
it was nearly that period before my reports were completed last year,
although I was assisted by Mr. [Antoine] Nau and the sergeant-major,
and sometimes by Lieutenants [James B.] Wilkinson and [Henry Richard]
Graham.[V'-8] Also, with respect to the Spanish country, I must know
the extent of the objects in view, in order to embrace those points in
my reports; and further, my dear sir, my health is by no means the
most perfect, my eyes being so extremely weak that it is almost
impossible for me to continue for one hour with the pen in my hand,
and by that time I have a considerable pain in my breast.
From those circumstances my general will perceive the almost
impracticability of my complying with the contents of his letter as to
duplicate reports from this place; but I shall immediately commence
the business of arranging and digesting my papers, and will proceed
with the labor with every perseverance my situation will permit until
the arrival of my sergeant and the balance of the party, should they
not be retarded more than 20 days, when I shall proceed immediately to
St. Louis, and thence through Kentucky, Virginia, etc., to the Federal
City, making no unnecessary delay, and during the whole of the route
prosecuting my business at every leisure moment. When at Washington, I
flatter myself with your assistance and advice. As I propose taking
courses, distances, etc., hence to St. Louis, it will be making the
tour of the greatest part of Louisiana, crossing the main rivers at
different points. I am certain that from the survey of the Missouri by
Captains Lewis and Clark, my own of the Mississippi, Lieutenant
Wilkinson's of the lower Arkansaw, which river I surveyed to its
sources, and Mr. Dunbar's of Red river, can be formed the completest
survey of Louisiana ever yet taken.
As to the instruments I had with me I wish the general to inform me in
what light they stood, as most of them were ruined in the mountains by
the falling of the horses from precipices, etc., and I left an order
at Chihuahua for the sergeant to sell them at a certain price, as the
addition of a land carriage of 500 leagues would not add to their
benefit.[V'-9] Baroney, if alive, is with my sergeant; he has proved a
noble fellow in his line, and I beg liberty to recommend him to some
appointment near the Kans, should any offer. I must further add the
following anecdote of my men, in whose breasts lay the whole secret of
my papers, and whom I frequently, when in the Spanish territories, was
obliged to punish severely for outrages committed in a state of
intoxication, yet who never once offered, or showed a disposition to
discover it. It is certain they knew instant death would follow;
still, their fidelity to their trust is remarkable. I have charged
them as to communications, and shall dispose of them in such a manner
as not to put it in their power to give things much publicity.
Dr. Robinson has accompanied me the whole route, is still with me, and
I take pleasure in acknowledging I have received important services
from him, as my companion in dangers and hardships, counselor in
difficulties, and one to whose chemical, botanical, and mineralogical
knowledge the expedition is greatly indebted--in short, Sir, he is a
young gentleman of talents, honor, and perseverance, possessing, in my
humble opinion, a military turn of mind, and would enter, I believe,
in case of an augmentation of the army, if he could obtain a rank
above a subaltern.
I hope the general will be pleased to have my copies forwarded by
Lieutenant Wilkinson, so that I can command the use of them at
Washington; also all my letters written him during the expedition, as
they contain information I wish to refer to, and the copies were
seized. Dr. [John] Sibley has informed me that the expedition up the
Arkansaw is suspended, which supersedes the necessity of my sending
the express ordered.
I congratulate the general on the safe arrival of Lieutenant
Wilkinson, and am sorry to hear of the difficulties he encountered. I
have been obliged to draw money of the Spanish government, which I
have to pay to their ambassador at Washington. I supported those of my
men who were with me all the time in the Spanish country. Being
separated from my baggage and never permitted to have it join me, and
having been presented to the commandant-general in a blanket
cappot,[V'-10] I was under the necessity of going to very considerable
expense to support what I considered not only my own honor, but the
dignity of our army. This, when a captain's pay is $2,400 per annum,
was a ruinous thing to my finances; but I hope it may be taken into
due consideration.
After making myself pretty perfect in the French language, I have
obtained such a knowledge of the Spanish as to make me confident in
asserting, in three or four years I will with ease make myself
sufficiently master of the latter, Italian, and Portuguese, to read
them all, and speak and write Spanish. The doctor has even exceeded me
in that point. I mention this to the general, as I know the interest
he takes in the improvement of his military protégé.
We heard in the Spanish dominions of the convulsions of the western
country, originating in Mr. Burr's plans, and that you were
implicated; sometimes that you were arrested, sometimes superseded,
etc. Those reports, although I never credited them, gave me great
unhappiness, as I conceived that the shafts of calumny were aimed at
your fame and honor, in a foreign country where these had hitherto
stood high and been revered and respected by every class. At St.
Antonio Colonel Cordero informed me of the truth of the statement
[_i. e._, falsity of those reports], which took a load from my breast
and made me comparatively happy; I hope ere long the villainy will be
unmasked, and malignity and slander hide their heads. The before
mentioned gentleman sent you by me a box of Spanish chocolate, which I
shall forward to Colonel Cushing. Governor Herrara said the
maliciousness of the world was such as to forbid his writing, but
begged to be sincerely remembered to you. A letter addressed to me at
Cincinnatti, Ohio, may possibly reach me on my route, when I hope to
receive your approbation of my conduct. Many letters written to me,
addressed to this place, have been secreted or destroyed; possibly the
general can give me a hint on the subject.
Those ideas have made a deep impression on my mind, and did not an
all-ruling passion sway me irresistibly to the profession of arms and
the paths of military glory, I would long since have resigned my sword
for the rural cot, where peace, health, and content would at least be
our inmates, should not our brows be crowned with laurel.
I must now conclude, as this letter has far exceeded the bounds
proposed when commenced; but the effusions of my heart on its contents
are such that I could not limit them to a more contracted space.
Excuse my scrawl, as I am entirely out of practice, but believe me to
be,
Dear General,
With high respect and esteem,
Your obedient servant,
[Signed] Z. M. PIKE, Captain.
GENERAL WILKINSON.
_Art. 14. Letter, Pike to Salcedo. (Orig. No. 18, pp. 83-85.)-
NATCHITOCHES, August 20th, 1807.
SIR:
Previous to my departure from Chihuahua, we had entered so fully into
the subject of the seizure of my papers, that I should never have made
another appeal until I made one through our government to the
ambassador of his Catholic Majesty, had I not received orders to that
effect; it not being known, at the time those instructions were given,
that the propriety of the seizure had been contested between your
Excellency and myself. But as you have now had time fully to
reconsider the business, it may not appear in the same light that it
did when I had the honor to address you before. Your Excellency may be
induced to conceive that the measure of seizing my notes, plans,
meteorological and astronomical observations, etc., for parts of the
Mississippi, Missouri, Osage, Kans, and Arkansaw rivers--waters
acknowledged by the Spanish government to be within the known
territories of the United States--may not be justifiable. Whatever may
be your opinion on those subjects, I am at an entire loss to conceive
how, and upon what principle, you could involve in that seizure
letters from individuals to individuals, the contents of which could
in no wise be interesting to the Spanish government.
I have therefore once more to appeal to your Excellency, with the hope
that the time you have had for deliberation may induce you to conceive
it proper, and but an act of justice, to deliver up the papers seized
at Chihuahua; and hope your Excellency will have the goodness to
address them to me in a packet, to the care of the commanding officer
of this place.
If the continuation of an amicable understanding between the two
nations be an object of estimation in the mind of your Excellency, the
final demarcation of limits must be considered as the first great step
to be taken toward its accomplishment. To enable my government to form
a correct idea on that subject, it was requisite they should be well
acquainted with the geographical situation of the heads of the
Arkansaw and Red rivers. The former part of this [requirement] I had
accomplished, and could with all ease have carried the remaining part
of that object into execution, after discovering my mistake of the Rio
del Norte for the Red river, had I been permitted by the governor of
New Mexico. Instead of which, I was hurried through the country to
Chihuahua, without having time given for the absent part of my party
and baggage to join me; by which means I was obliged to appear in a
garb and manner entirely incompatible with the rank I have the honor
to hold, and in some degree an indignity [was thus offered] to the
country whose commission I bear. To add to my mortification, I was
then deprived of the information I had obtained at the risk of our
lives, and the suffering of unknown miseries. The information
contained in my notes was not only of a geographical nature, but also
such as would enable the executive of the United States to take some
steps to ameliorate the barbarous state of various savage tribes whom
I visited; and, I may be permitted to add, would have added in some
small degree to the acquirement of science, which is for the general
benefit of mankind.
When I left Chihuahua, I was informed that my sergeant and party were
detained near the place, in order that they should not be permitted to
join me, [and to the end] that by a separate examination they might be
intimidated to make a declaration to justify the conduct observed
toward us. This I am conscious must have failed; but I am at an entire
loss to conceive why they should have been detained until this time,
when your Excellency assured me they should follow immediately. Their
detention has been of considerable private injury to myself, and an
insult to my government.
When I marched from Chihuahua, your Excellency officially informed me
that everything had been prepared for my transport to our lines. I was
much surprised to have to pay for the hire of horses, etc., demanded
of me at the first place where we changed our escorts, as I neither
conceived it just that I should pay for an involuntary tour I had
taken through your territories, nor was I prepared to do it; but as
your officers were responsible, and gave their receipts for the
transport, and from the orders received by Captain Viana at
Nacogdoches, I was obliged to hire beasts to take me to Natchitoches,
although an escort of your troops were furnished. [See note 2, p.
814].
I here with the greatest pleasure embrace the opportunity of
acknowledging the polite treatment I received from your officers in
general on my route, but in particular from Colonels Cordero and
Herrara, Captains Barelo and Viana, and Lieutenant Malgares; to all of
whom it would be my greatest pleasure to have it in my power to return
the compliment.
Will your Excellency do me the honor to present my high respects to
your lady, and my compliments to Mr. Truxillo and Father Rocus.
I am, Sir,
With the most profound consideration,
Your obedient servant,
[Signed] Z. M. PIKE, Captain.
His Excellency,
GOVERNOR SALCEDO.
FOOTNOTES:
[V'-1] The Appendix to Pt. 3 of the orig. ed. was the most
extraordinary hotch-potch I ever saw in type--a lot of letters and
other papers bundled together in no intelligible or imaginable order.
There being no evidence of design or purpose, the first step toward
bringing an appearance of order out of this confusion must be taken by
disregarding the original helter-skelter entirely, and by rearranging
the various pieces of which this Appendix consisted as freely as if
they were loose manuscripts accidentally disordered. The documents
with which we have to do were disarranged as follows:
No. 1. Pike's Observations on New Spain, the leading article, not
numbered, making pp. 1-51, or more than half of the whole Appendix.
(This I have disposed of in the foregoing Chap. IV.)
No. 2, pp. 52, 53. A fragmentary vocabulary of Mississippi
place-names, having no connection with Pt. 3 of the book. (This I have
made Chap. IX., pp. 355, 356, of Pt. 1, where it belongs.)
No. 3, pp. 53-55. A letter from Pike to Wilkinson.
No. 4, pp. 55-57. A letter from Wilkinson to Pike.
No. 5, pp. 57-63. A letter from Pike to Wilkinson.
No. 6, pp. 64-68. A Congressional report, with accompanying documents,
including matter relating to all three of Pike's expeditions, yet
lacking one of the most important of the papers belonging to it (see
No. 13, below). (All these I shall relegate to the following Chap.
VI.)
No. 7, p. 69. A mere paragraph about a priest. (This I have simply
interpolated in the text of the itinerary, Chap. II., pp. 603,
604--the place where it belongs.)
No. 8, pp. 69, 70. A letter from Pike to Allencaster.
No. 9, p. 70. A certificate from Allencaster to Pike.
No. 10, p. 71. A letter from Pike to Allencaster.
No. 11, p. 72. A letter from Pike to Salcedo.
No. 12, p. 72. A letter from Salcedo to Pike.
No. 13, pp. 73-77. The missing document which belongs to No. 6 (see
above), being a brief sketch of Pike's Arkansaw Expedition and of his
Mexican Tour, no date, no place, no addressee. (This, of course, goes
with No. 6, in the following Chap. VI.)
No. 14, pp. 78, 79. A letter from Pike to Salcedo.
No. 15, pp. 79, 80. A letter from Salcedo to Pike.
No. 16, pp. 80-82. Inventory of papers seized by the Spanish
authorities, with accompanying certificate.
No. 17, pp. 82, 83. A letter from Pike to Salcedo.
No. 18, pp. 83-85. A letter from Pike to Salcedo.
No. 19, pp. 86, 87. A letter from Salcedo to Wilkinson.
By eliminating from the above No. 1, No. 2, No. 6, No. 7, and No. 13,
as above indicated, the residuum consists entirely of correspondence
relating to the Mexican Tour, which is easily rearranged in the
chronological order of the several letters, and thus forms the present
Chapter V.
[V'-2] On this subject I can throw a little further light, as
reflected from some documents which I find on file in the Archives of
the War Department. The following letter is in a clerk's hand, with
Pike's signature:
WASHINGTON CITY Feby. 10^th. 1808.
SIR,
Being informed that the Chevalier Don Fownda, Charge des
affaires from his Catholic Majesty to the United States,
has forwarded to your office an account of expenses said to
have occurred in consequence of my being _obliged_ to pass
thro' the internal provinces of New Spain, amounting to a
sum, exceeding 21,000 Dollars.--I have thought it proper to
state to you the following circumstances. On my being
informed by the Gov^r. at Santa fé that I should be obliged
to go to Chihuahua, I addressed a letter to him in which
amongst other topics--I demanded to be advised if myself
and troops were to be supported at the expense of the U
States or his Catholic majesty--On this subject he was
silent in his reply--but the day I marched from that city
sent me a small sum of money, which I was informed was the
subsistence money of my party to Chihuahua--at which place
I refunded said sum to an officer of the Gov^rs.
acquaintance & took his receipt for the same--at the seat
of goverment I received $1000 and gave triplicate receipts
making my goverment responsible for the same--and on the
close of my correspondence with Gen^l. Salcedo was informed
that I should be conveyed to our territories in the same
manner I had been from New Mexico to Chihuahua--That was to
find our own subsistence--but all other expences to be paid
by the Spanish officers.--I left a requisition that my
party in the rear might be allowed $2-6¼/100 per diem for
their subsistence, and as this was for the support of our
troops, when in their country, it remains to be decided by
our Gov^t, whether they will refund the money--At the first
place where I changed my escort on this side of Chihuahua,
pay was demanded for the services of the mules, and horses,
which I positively refused--but finding the officer was
embarassed, I gave him a receipt agreable to the enclosed
copy and date.--at S^t. Antonio I received $200 of
Gov^r. Cordero--whereof the account stands enclosed--but
I presume in justice no part should be allowed except the
cash advanced, and the mens subsistence--as agreable to the
Chevaliers own maxim--"_the Government which unnecessarily
produced the expenditures ought in justice to defray
them_"--.
I have the honor to be,
Sir,
With high consideration
Your most ob^t. Serv^t.
[Signed] Z. M. PIKE Captain
1st U States Reg^t. Infy
The Hon^able.
JAMES MADISON,
Sec^y. Dep^t. State
The foregoing letter has two inclosures. One is the following form of
account:
"U. States to
the Spanish Govt.--
Dr.
7th. April 1807. To cash furnished on receipt to
Cap: Pike at Chihuahua, $1000
11th. June, 07. To cash furnished Cap: Pike at S^t.
Antonio, on receipt, 200
To a requisition for subsistence of my party in the
rear at $2-6¼/100 from ---- to ----
[*]To amount of five receipts worded
in substance as below--not exceeding 250
-----
$
=====
[*] ---- 07.
I acknowledged to have been furnished by ---- with ----
mules ---- horses for the transport of my party and baggage
from ---- to ---- The hire of said beasts to be hereafter
adjusted between the Gov^t. of the U. States and that of
his Cath. Majesty--
"(Signed) Z. PIKE.
"N. B. The whole of those charges (the latter of which I by
no means conceive the U States under any just obligation to
discharge) cannot if my men have recently left the country,
amount to more than $2000. 1200 of which I only pledged the
faith of the Gov^t. for--Pike"
The other one of the two inclosures is the following memorandum or
indorsement of the State Department:
"The account against Pike inadmissible save the $1200
advanced him in Cash--and what may have been advanced to
his men left in Mexico at the rate of $2-6¼/100 p.
day--the Sum he asked for their subsistence--It appears to
have been understood by Capt Pike that he was to find
subsistence for himself & Party and that the Spanish Govert
would meet the other expences of his Journey."
[V'-3] Rivière au Bois d'Arc of the French, as we should say Bodark,
Bowdark, or Bowwood r., meaning the Osage. The reference is to the
bois d'arc or bowwood, the Osage orange, _Maclura aurantiaca_, a
well-known tree of the lower Mississippi valley, whose wood was
formerly in great request for the purpose indicated in the vernacular
name. It is very thorny, bears pruning well, and has come to be much
cultivated for hedges. Its botanical affinities are with the mulberry.
[V'-4] The meaning of the clause is clear, though it may not be
obvious on its face, owing to the use of "summoning" in a particular
sense: compare Pike's use of "summons" in Art. 11, p. 825. Agreeably
with etymology, "summoning" might be written _submonition_, on the
model of _admonition_; the radical meaning of these two words is much
the same, both conveying the idea of warning, with the implied force
of enjoining, restraining, etc. Salcedo simply reminds Wilkinson that
the Spanish government had warned the United States off those
premises, and consequently that the latter should not have carried
into effect any projects of, etc.
[V'-5] _Sic_--but "Alferez" is not a part of Walker's name, being his
rank in the Mexican cavalry: read "Walker, ensign of," etc.
[V'-6] Thomas Humphrey Cushing of Massachusetts, a captain in the
Continental Army, became a captain of the 2d Infantry, Mar. 4th, 1791;
he was arranged to the second sub-Legion Sept. 4th, 1792; promoted to
be a major in the first sub-Legion Mar. 3d, 1793, and assigned to the
1st Infantry Nov. 1st, 1796; he acted as inspector of the army from
Feb. 27th, 1797, to May 22d, 1798, and became lieutenant-colonel of
the 2d Infantry April 1st, 1802; he acted as adjutant and
inspector-general from Mar. 26th, 1802, to May 9th, 1807, was promoted
to the colonelcy of the 2d Infantry Sept. 7th, 1805, to a
brigadier-generalship July 2d, 1812, and honorably discharged June
15th, 1815; he died Oct. 19th, 1822.
[V'-7] It will be observed that Pike's syntax leaves the personal
pronoun equivocal. We naturally read that Sergeant Meek killed one of
his own men, _i. e._, a man of Pike's party; and I have been more than
once summonsed, during my editorial function, to say who this man was.
But there is no record that I can discover, and no other intimation
than the above ambiguous clause, that any man of Pike's or Meek's
party was killed by Meek. On the contrary, Pike's final word about his
men accounts for every one of them: see p. 855, and note there. In the
absence of any further evidence, we must understand that Sergeant Meek
killed one of General Salcedo's men; and if so, might easily be
accused of "great intractability."
[V'-8] Of Virginia, appointed from Kentucky a second lieutenant of the
3d Infantry Feb. 16th, 1801, and transferred to the 2d Infantry Apr.
1st, 1802; became a first lieutenant of the same Dec. 20th, 1803, and
resigned Jan. 31st, 1808; was made a captain of the first Rifles Mar.
8th, 1809, and appointed major Aug. 12th, 1814, but the appointment
was negatived by the Senate Dec. 10th, 1814; he was honorably
discharged June 15th, 1815, and died in 1819.
[V'-9] That is, Captain Pike wishes to know how he is to account for
instruments which were damaged, or which he had ordered to be sold, to
prevent further injury on a long march.
[V'-10] That is, F. _capote_, some sort of surtout, overcoat, or
cloak, constantly confounded with F. _capot_, meaning hood. Among the
Canadian voyageurs and other French in America, _capote_ was the most
general name of any such outer garment. It constantly occurs, for
example, in annals of the fur-trade of the Northwest, capotes being
made of several regulation sizes and styles, for barter with the
Indians, as well as for wear of the men of the N. W. Company.
CHAPTER VI.
CONGRESSIONAL REPORT AND ACCOMPANYING DOCUMENTS.[VI'-1]
-(Orig. No. 6, pp. 64-68, and No. 13, pp. 73-77.)-
_The committee of the House of Representatives of the
Congress of the United States, to whom was referred the
resolution to inquire whether any, and if any, what
compensation ought to be made to Captain Zebulon M. Pike,
and his companions, for their services in exploring the
Mississippi river, in their late expedition to the sources
of the Osage, Arkansaw and La Platte rivers, and in their
tour through New Spain, report:-
That it appears by the documents accompanying this report, that the
objects of each of the exploring expeditions, together with the
instructions for executing them, were communicated to and approved by
the president of the United States; that the conduct of Captain Pike,
in each of the expeditions, also met with the approbation of the
president, and that the information obtained and communicated to the
executive on the subjects of his instructions, and particularly in
relation to the source of the Mississippi and the natives in that
quarter, and the country generally, as well on the Upper Mississippi
as that between the Arkansaw and the Missouri, and on the borders of
the latter extensive river to its source, and the country adjacent, is
highly interesting in a political, geographical, and historical view;
and that although no special encouragement was given to the
individuals who performed these laborious and dangerous expeditions,
yet it was but reasonable for them, should they fortunately succeed in
the objects, to expect some reward from government; that the zeal,
perseverance, and intelligence of Captain Pike, as commander, have
been meritorious, and the conduct of the individuals generally who
composed the parties respectively, has been faithful, and the
exertions arduous. The committee therefore are of opinion that
compensation ought to be made by law to Captain Pike and his
companions.
[ACCOMPANYING DOCUMENTS.]
WAR DEPARTMENT, Dec. 7th, 1808.
SIR:
I herewith inclose copies of the instructions to Lieutenant Pike, for
the government of his conduct on the two exploring expeditions alluded
to in your letter; and likewise lists of the names of the men
composing those parties. You will perceive that the instructions were
given by General Wilkinson; the objects, however, of each party,
together with the instructions, were communicated to and approved by
the president of the United States.
Although no special encouragement was given to the individuals who
performed these laborious and dangerous expeditions, yet it was but
reasonable for them, should they fortunately succeed in their objects,
to expect a liberal reward from the government; and as there can be no
reasonable doubt of the zeal, perseverance, and intelligence of the
commander, or of the faithful conduct and arduous exertions of the
individuals generally, composing the respective parties, it may, I
trust, be presumed that no objection will be opposed to a reasonable
compensation for such meritorious services.
I am very respectfully, Sir,
Your obedient servant,
H. DEARBORN.
[Secretary at War.]
HON. J. MONTGOMERY, Chairman, etc.
* * * * *
HEADQUARTERS, St. Louis, July 30th, 1805.
SIR:
Having completed your equipments, you are to proceed up the
Mississippi with all possible diligence, taking the following
instructions for your general government, which are to yield to your
discretion in all cases of exigency.
You will please to take the course of the river, and calculate
distances by time, noting rivers, creeks, highlands, prairies,
islands, rapids, shoals, mines, quarries, timber, water, soil, Indian
villages and settlements, in a diary, to comprehend reflections on the
winds and weather.
It is interesting to government to be informed of the population and
residence of the several Indian nations, of the quantity and species
of skins and furs they barter per annum, and their relative price to
goods; of the tracts of country on which they generally make their
hunts, and the people with whom they trade.
You will be pleased to examine strictly for an intermediate point,
between this place and the Prairie des Chiens, suitable for a military
post, and also on the Ouiscousing, near its mouth, for a similar
establishment; and will obtain the consent of the Indians for their
erection, informing them that they are intended to increase their
trade and ameliorate their condition.
You will proceed to ascend the main branch of the river until you
reach the source of it, or the season may forbid your further progress
without endangering your return before the waters are frozen up.
You will endeavor to ascertain the latitude of the most remarkable
places in your route, with the extent of the navigation and the
direction of the different rivers which fall into the Mississippi, and
you will not fail to procure specimens of whatever you may find
curious, in the mineral, vegetable, or animal kingdoms, to be rendered
at this place.
In your course you are to spare no pains to conciliate the Indians and
to attach them to the United States, and you may invite the great
chiefs of such distant nations as have not been at this place, to pay
me a visit.
Your own good sense will regulate the consumption of your provisions,
and direct the distribution of the trifling presents which you may
carry with you, particularly your flags.
I wish you a speedy, pleasant, and safe tour, and am, Sir, with
sentiments of respect and esteem,
Your obedient servant,
[Signed] JAMES WILKINSON.
P. S. In addition to the preceding orders, you will be pleased to
obtain permission from the Indians who claim the ground, for the
erection of military posts and trading-houses at the mouth of the
river St. Pierre, the falls of St. Anthony, and every other critical
point which may fall under your observation; these permissions to be
granted in formal conferences, regularly recorded, and the ground
marked off.
[Signed] J. W.
LIEUTENANT Z. M. PIKE,
1st Regt. Infantry.
* * * * *
WAR DEPARTMENT, Feb. 24th, 1808.
SIR:
In answer to your letter of the 22d instant, I can with pleasure
observe, that although the two exploring expeditions you have
performed were not previously ordered by the president of the United
States, there were frequent communications on the subject of each
between General Wilkinson and this department, of which the president
of the United States was from time to time acquainted; and it will be
no more than what justice requires to say that your conduct, in each
of those expeditions, met the approbation of the president; and that
the information you obtained and communicated to the executive, in
relation to the source of the Mississippi and the natives in that
quarter, and the country generally, as well on the Upper Mississippi
as that between the Arkansaw and the Missouri, and on the borders of
the latter extensive river to its source and the country adjacent, has
been considered highly interesting in a political, geographical, and
historical view. And you may rest assured that your services are held
in high estimation by the president of the United States; and if any
opinion of my own can afford you any satisfaction, I very frankly
declare that I consider the public much indebted to you for the
enterprising, persevering, and judicious manner in which you have
performed them.
I am, very respectfully, Sir,
Your obedient servant,
[Signed] H. DEARBORN.
[Secretary at War.]
CAPTAIN ZEBULON M. PIKE.
* * * * *
_Sketch of an Expedition made from St. Louis, to explore the internal
parts of Louisiana, by order of his Excellency, General James
Wilkinson. (Orig. No. 13, pp. 73-77.)-
I embarked at Belle Fontaine, on the Missouri, near its confluence
with the Mississippi, with a command of one lieutenant, one doctor (a
volunteer), two sergeants, one corporal, 17 [16] privates, and one
interpreter;[VI'-2] having under my charge eight or ten Osage chiefs
who had recently returned from a visit to the city of Washington,
together with about 40 men, women, and children of the same nation,
redeemed from captivity from another Indian nation; and two Pawnees
who had likewise been to the city of Washington [making a total of 51
Indians].
We ascended the Missouri river to the river of the Osage, up which we
ascended to the Osage towns, and arrived on or about the 18th of
August [p. 385], and delivered to their nation in safety their chiefs,
women, and children, with speeches to the nation.
Here I remained making astronomical observations, and preparing for my
march by land, until the 1st of September, when we took our departure
for the Pawnee Republic, accompanied by some Osage chiefs, who were
deputed by their nation to form a treaty of peace and amity with the
nation of the Kans with whom they were then at war, under the auspices
of the United States. I arrived at the Pawnee Republic about the 25th
of said month [p. 409], where I caused to be held a conference between
the Osage and Kans chiefs, and mediated a peace for the two nations.
Having held councils with the Pawnees, made astronomical observations,
etc., I marched from the said village on the 7th of October, and
arrived at the Arkansaw on the 11th [read 15th] of said month, where
we remained until the 28th, preparing canoes, etc., for Lieutenant
Wilkinson, who descended the said river, with one sergeant, six men,
and two Osage Indians.[VI'-3] During my stay at said river, I likewise
made astronomical observations.
On the said day I marched with the remainder of the party up the
Arkansaw. Nothing occurred worthy of note until about the middle [on
the 22d] of November, when we met a party of Pawnees, of 60 warriors,
who were returning from an expedition against the Kayaways. At first
our conference was of the most friendly nature, and I made them some
small presents; but as they commenced to steal and plunder whatever
they could with impunity, we were finally obliged to take to our arms,
and were on the point of coming to hostilities, when the Pawnees
retired, and we pursued our march.
We arrived where the Arkansaw enters the mountains, on the 4th or 5th
[5th] of December, where we remained until the 9th [10th], searching
for the route across the mountains, when we marched by a trace which
we discovered, leaving the main Arkansaw to our left. Much to our
astonishment we arrived about the middle of said month [Dec. 13th] on
a water of the Missouri, which I ascertained to be the [South fork of
the] river Platte, on which we discovered signs of immense numbers of
Indians. Here we remained a few days searching for those Indians, in
hopes to obtain from them information as to a route to cross the
mountains to the west; but not discovering any, we crossed a large
chain [Park range] by a practicable route [Trout Creek pass] and fell
on a large branch of water which I then conceived to be the head of
the Red river [but which was the Arkansaw]. Here we remained a few
days [till Dec. 21st] to recruit our horses and ourselves, when I
ordered the party to proceed down said river, and I with two men
ascended it [nearly] to its source, where I made some observations. I
then returned and overtook the party, when we continued to descend
said stream, until the perpendicularity of the rocks [of the Grand
Cañon of the Arkansaw] and other difficulties rendered it impossible
to proceed any further with horses, several of which had already been
killed by falling from the rocks, etc.
I then caused sleds to be constructed, and soldiers to draw the
baggage on the ice, and ordered a few men to endeavor to conduct the
horses by a more eligible route out of the mountains; at the extremity
of which we all arrived by the 9th of January, and found that we had
descended the main branch of the Arkansaw, conceiving it to be the Red
river, and were again at the same point [Cañon City] we had left on
the 9th [10th] ult.
My remaining horses not being in a situation to allow me to hope for
any further assistance from them, unless permitted further to recover,
and as this would have engrossed a long time, I determined to leave
some men with the horses and part of the baggage, and proceed with the
remainder and the articles absolutely necessary, on foot. On the 14th
of January, having constructed a small place for my men and baggage
who remained, we marched, proceeding up a western branch [Grape creek]
of the Arkansaw, which appeared to lead in a direct route through the
mountains. On the 20th of said month, being obliged to cross a prairie
[Wet Mountain valley] of some leagues in breadth, late in the evening,
and many of the soldiers having their feet wet, we had it not in our
power to make fire until eight or nine o'clock at night. We were so
unfortunate as to ascertain that nine of the party were frozen. The
ensuing day, discovering that they were not all able to march, we
remained a few days to lay in provisions. Here I left two soldiers and
four loads of our baggage, and proceeded on our march; but on the
third day, finding another of my men not able to march, I was obliged
to leave him encamped, having previously furnished him with sufficient
provision. We then crossed another chain [Sangre de Cristo] of
mountains, and on the 1st of February [31st of January] arrived on the
waters of the Rio del Norte, which I then conceived to be the Red
river, as some maps which I held portrayed the source of the Red river
to lie between those of the Arkansaw and Rio del Norte. I then
proceeded to choose a station [on the Rio Conejos] where there was
sufficient wood to form canoes or rafts, in order to descend the
supposed [Red] river to Natchitoches.
Having in many instances experienced the insolence and presuming
dispositions of the Indians, when in superior numbers, I conceived it
proper to throw up a small work for the protection of ourselves and
baggage, until we should be prepared to descend the river.
Four or five days [seven] after I dispatched five men to return to
those I had left in the mountains, and bring them on, if capable of
marching; if not, to supply them with provision and bring on the
baggage. Dr. Robinson, who had hitherto accompanied me as a volunteer,
having some pecuniary demands in the province of New Mexico, conceived
that this would be the nearest point from which he could go in and
probably return, previous to my being prepared to descend the river.
He left me on the 7th of February with that view.
A few days after [on Feb. 16th], hunting with one of my men, I
discovered two men on horseback. I would have avoided them, agreeably
to my orders; but, finding they continued to pursue us, I conceived it
most proper to bring them to a conference. This, with great
difficulty, I effected, as they appeared to be apprehensive that my
intentions were hostile toward them. I conducted them to my camp,
informed them of my intention to descend the river, and made them some
small presents. Had they then informed me of my being on the Rio del
Norte, I should have immediately retired; but, having executed their
commission, they returned the following day on the immediate route to
the [Spanish] settlements. The following day [Feb. 17th] the party I
had detached for the men whom I had been compelled to leave in the
mountains, returned with one only, and all the baggage, the other two
not being able to come on. I then immediately [Feb. 19th] dispatched
my sergeant and one man, to order and conduct on the men, horses, and
baggage left on the Arkansaw, by a route which I conceived
practicable.
On the 24th or 25th [26th] of February, in the morning, two Frenchmen
arrived at my camp, and informed me that an officer and 50 men of his
Catholic Majesty's troops had marched from Santa Fe, in order to
protect me from the Utahs, who had exhibited a disposition to attack
me, and would probably be at my camp in two or three days. In the
course of two or three hours, I was informed by a sentinel, whom I
always kept on a hill, of the approach of a party of strangers; and in
a short period there arrived two officers and 100 men, at a small
distance from the camp. The lieutenant commandant, having entered my
works by my invitation, informed me that the governor of New Mexico
had been informed of my situation; and, understanding I was bound for
Red river, offered me any assistance which lay in his power to
accommodate me. I replied that I stood in no need of assistance; that
I could descend the river with craft which I proposed constructing. He
then informed me I was on the Rio del Norte, which astonished me
extremely, and that the source of the Red river was eight days' march
below Santa Fe; and that the governor, being informed that I had
missed my route, offered mules, horses, etc., to conduct me to the Red
river, and wished to see me at his seat of government. I told him that
if the whole of my party were here, I would not hesitate to pay my
respects to his Excellency, with one or two men. He then assured me
that there was not the least constraint; that I could go in before or
after the arrival of my party, as my inclination dictated; that if I
went in now he would leave an Utah interpreter and one man, with the
men of my party I chose to leave, in order to conduct the sergeant and
party when they arrived. I finally concluded it would be more
consistent with the good understanding which existed between the
government of the United States and his Catholic Majesty, to proceed
to Santa Fe, and give to Governor Allencaster an explanation of my
being on his frontiers. We then marched for his [the Spanish
lieutenant's] camp, about 12 miles distant, leaving the [Utah]
interpreter, one Spanish soldier, a corporal [Jackson] and one private
[Carter] of my detachment, with orders for the conduct of my sergeant
[Meek] when he should arrive.
The next day I was much surprised to find that the lieutenant and all
the regular troops, except 10, were to remain, and that the militia
officer was to conduct me to Santa Fe; the lieutenant giving as a
reason the particular orders to see all my party in safety at the
capital. We arrived at the town in four or five days [Mar. 3d], where
I was received at first in a manner very different from what I had
been taught to expect from the proffers of the lieutenant in the name
of the governor. The arms of my men being taken possession of by the
guard the first night of my arrival, without my knowledge, and my
being likewise informed that Dr. Robinson was a prisoner at some
leagues' distance, they induced me to believe that a rupture had taken
place between Spain and the United States, and to address a letter to
the governor, demanding if I was to consider myself and party as
prisoners of war, and if the expense arising from the detention of
myself and party was to be defrayed by the United States or his
Catholic Majesty. To this his Excellency gave me a very polite verbal
answer, assuring me that I was by no means to consider myself as a
prisoner; that the arms of my men were taken unknown to him, and
should be immediately restored; but that it was necessary I should
march immediately to join Lieutenant Malgares and party, who were
waiting for me at the village of St. Fernandez, in order to conduct me
to Chihuahua, to be presented to the commandant-general with my papers
for an explanation. On my arriving at said village, I addressed a
letter to the governor, informing him that Dr. Robinson had
accompanied my party as a volunteer. This I had not acknowledged at
Santa Fe, as I was apprehensive that his coming on to the frontiers of
the province with a military party, in case of a rupture between the
two governments, might place him in a critical position.[VI'-4]
The lieutenant [Pike] only further observes that he has not entered
into the particulars of the hardships undergone, such as enduring
thirst or famine for three or four days, at different periods;
marching over rugged mountains, through snows three or four feet deep,
exposed to every inclemency of the weather for want of clothes,
carrying at the same time packs of 60 or 70 pounds' burden--in short,
every hardship to which a savage life in its greatest state of
barbarity is exposed. These are circumstances only calculated to
excite humanity, and not to give explanation as to the general chain
of events connected with the voyage. He therefore refers his
Excellency [President Jefferson] to the commander-in-chief of the
United States army, for an explanation of the general intent and
nature of the expedition, and to his notes, astronomical observations,
and charts, for the courses, situations, etc., of the different points
and rivers alluded to in the foregoing sketch.
* * * * *
_Return of persons employed on a tour of discovery and exploration to
the source of the Mississippi, in the years 1805 and 1806 [and to the
source of the Arkansaw in the years 1806 and 1807]._
Lieutenant Z. M. Pike; Interpreter Pierre Rosseau; Sergeant Henry
Kennerman; Corporal William E. Meek; Corporal Samuel Bradley.
Privates John Boley; Peter Branden; John Brown; Jacob Carter; Thomas
Dougherty; William Gorden; Solomon Huddleston; Jeremiah [R.] Jackson;
Hugh Menaugh; Theodore Miller; John Mountjoy; David Owings; Alexander
Roy; Patrick Smith; John Sparks; Freegift Stoute; David Whelply.
This party left St. Louis the 9th of August, 1805, but had been
detached for that duty from the 1st of July. They returned the 30th of
April, 1806.
From this time until the 15th of July, I was preparing for the second
expedition, to the westward, which consisted of the following persons,
to wit:
Captain Z. M. Pike; Lieutenant James B. Wilkinson*; Dr. John H.
Robinson; Interpreter Baroney Vasquez+; Sergeant Joseph
Ballenger*; Sergeant William E. Meek+; Corporal Jeremiah [R.]
Jackson+.
Privates John Boley*; Samuel Bradley*; John Brown; Jacob
Carter+; Thomas Dougherty+; William Gorden; Solomon Huddleston;*
Henry Kennerman [deserted]; Hugh Menaugh; Theodore Miller+; John
Mountjoy+; Alexander Roy; Patrick Smith+; John Sparks+; Freegift
Stoute; John Wilson*.
* Those thus marked descended the Arkansaw river, and arrived at New
Orleans some time about the ---- of February, 1807.
+ Those thus marked are still detained in New Spain.[VI'-5]
The balance [except Kennerman] arrived at the Nachitoches on or about
the 1st of July, 1807. But it may probably be better to leave the
whole time undefined, to be regulated by the honorable secretary of
war.
FOOTNOTES:
[VI'-1] This chapter, which appears to be a number of disjointed
pieces, whose connection is not obvious, is really all of a part,
being a certain Congressional matter. It is easily traced to its
source in American State Papers, as the set of documents which Pike
brought to bear on Congress for legislative action in his case, when
he was trying to secure some appropriation to recompense himself and
his companions for what they had undergone and accomplished during his
two expeditions. Barring the way in which it was botched in this book,
Nos. 6 and 13 are substantially the same as Doc. No. 259 of the 2d
Session of the 10th Congress, being the report of a committee laid
before the Ho. Reps. Dec. 16th, 1808, with accompanying papers, and as
such will be found printed in American State Papers, folio,
Washington, Gales and Seaton, 1834, pp. 942-944. The same volume
contains, on p. 719, Doc. No. 248 of the 1st Session of the 10th
Congress, being a previous report of a committee, communicated by John
Montgomery, chairman, to the Ho. Reps., Mar. 10th, 1808. The same
volume also contains, on p. 463, Doc. No. 212 of the 2d Session of the
9th Congress, a Report on Exploration of Western Waters, communicated
by Mr. Alston to the Ho. Reps., Dec. 22d, 1806, mentioning Lewis and
Clark, Pike, and Freeman, and recommending an annual appropriation for
the purpose of such explorations. But none of these bills passed or
became a law, though in Pike's own case they were, as we see, entirely
favorable to his claim for extra remuneration. The case was reopened
by Pike's widow, many years after his death; but nothing ever came of
it. This seems hard, especially as Lewis and Clark and their men were
well rewarded by Congressional legislation; but acts of Congress are
as inscrutable as the ways of Providence, in any question of right or
wrong. As to the composition of this chapter, see note 1, p. 807, and
observe that we have: (1) The Report of the Congressional Committee of
which Mr. Montgomery was chairman, recommending an appropriation. (2)
A letter from the Secretary of War to this chairman, inclosing copies
of instructions Pike received from Wilkinson for each of his
expeditions. (3) A copy of _one_ of these instructions, namely, for
the Mississippi voyage, but no copy of the other which ought to appear
here--for the reason, no doubt, that Pike had put it already in his
book, as a sort of preface to Pt. 2: see note 1, p. 562. Both or
neither of these instructions should have come here. (4) Dearborn's
complimentary letter to Pike. (5) Pike's return of men, etc., or
roster of his two parties, furnished for the information of Congress
upon the question of who were the persons for whom reward was claimed.
[VI'-2] This roster is at variance with that given in the itinerary,
p. 358, where it stands one lieutenant (Wilkinson), one doctor
(Robinson, who was the volunteer), two sergeants (Ballenger and Meek),
one corporal (Jackson), 16 privates (Boley, Bradley, Brown, Carter,
Dougherty, Gorden, Huddleston, Kennerman, Menaugh, Miller, Mountjoy,
Roy, Smith, Sparks, Stoute, Wilson), and one interpreter (Vasquez).
Compare note 2, pp. 358-360, and note 50, p. 510. Numerous other slips
in this sketch, notably of dates, indicate that it was written from
memory.
[VI'-3] It appears from Lieutenant Wilkinson's own report that he had
but five men with him, the sergeant and four privates. Pike's
enumeration of "six men" besides the sergeant includes the two Osages,
whom he thus counts twice, to an aggregate of nine persons.
[VI'-4] As a pendent to the foregoing sketch, which was prepared for
the information of Congress, may be presented a hitherto unpublished
letter which Pike wrote to the Secretary of War soon after his arrival
in Washington, when he transmitted reports of his Western Expedition.
It is printed literally and punctually true to the manuscript now on
file in the archives of the War Department.
WASHINGTON CITY .08
Jany. 26 ...
SIR!
I am at length enabled to present you with the reports of my
late expidition from the period of our sailing from Belle
Fontain on the 15^th. of July 1806; to my leaveing my
Stockade on the Rio del Norte under escort of the Spanish
Cavalry; on the 27. Feby. 07.
They should have been presented some time since, had I not
have been imployed by the Commander in Chief, for a very
consedrable proportion of my time since my arrival at the
seate of Goverment:--It must be recollected that the Spanish
General seized on all my Documents in his power; Amongst
which [were] the book of Charts protracted, daily, from my
notes and the eye; and although I retained a Copy of
Courses, Distances, &c--by which I have been enabled to
retrace my plans, and routes, yet they necessarily are not
so perfect as the Original and daily protractions would have
made them: They likewise obtained, and retained a note book
engrossed with Observations on the manners, morals, and
habits of the Aborigines of the countries through which we
passed; the loss of which naturally abridged my desertation
on those heads; also all my Meteorological tables to the
entrance of their country where [were] amongst the papers
sized [seized]: But what I regret the most was my
Astronomical Observations having taken at Several of the
most important points, the necessary Data, from which on my
arrival at the United States, and having it in my power to
refer to the appropriate tables and Calculations, I could
have fixed the Latt. and Longitude and thereby secured the
Great Geographical Object of giving a Determinate position
to Various and important points of our Country, from having
it in my power to correct the Chart which I now present you
agreeably to the true principals of spherical projections.
The few notes you see of the Latt. are ascertained from
letters I wrote Gen^l. Wilkinson at different periods and
the Longitude would have been preserved in the same manner
had I have had tables with me which would have enabled me to
calculate the immersions & emersions;--as well as angular
distances at the time the observations were taken.--In the
Chart herewith I have included all the Country between the
La Platte of the Missouri and the Red river of the
Mississsippi; and although it is, and from the nature of our
information, of that immense district _must be_, very
imperfect; yet I do not hesitate to assert it is the best
extant: I have carefully remarkd on said Chart all the parts
by actual survey and the Gentleman by whom surveyed, in
order that each may lay claim to his proper proportion of
fame.--You have also herewith L^t. Wilkinsons report of his
expedition after I detached him down the Arkensaw, (and his
seperate Chart on a large scale), in which he encountered
immense dificulties in the accomplishment of the desired
end.
I have not the talents nor passions requisite for the
Botanist or Mineralogist, but had I have possessed them; the
various duties I was oblidged to perform of commanding
Officer, Surveyor; Astronomer; hunter; and advanced guard,
together with the dreary season in which we travelled part
of the route; with our minds much more actively employed in
forming resources for our preservation from famine; and
defence against any savage enemy who might assail us, then
[than] examining the productions of Nature which was under
our feet and Instead of our eyes being directed to the
Ground; they were endeavouring to peace [pierce] the Wild
before us--or giveing distinction and form to moveing Bodies
on the distant Prairies--or enjoying the rapturous sublimity
of the unbounded prospects which were frequently presented
to our View's. Yet Doc^r. Robinson who possessed both
talents, and taste for those pursuits; has promised to
enclose me some remarks which no doubt will be interesting;
and if received shall be presented to the War Department.
After I entered the Spanish Dominions I was as careful to
conceal any notes or observations, I made on their country
as I had been indifferent to all that related to what was in
the conceived Territories of the United States; Trusting to
the dignified title of an American Officer; the Caution with
which I conceived the Spanish Goverment would act and an
Idea I had eroneously formed of their want of Energy; yet
owing to some Indications I was induced to conceal my
journal and other papers, leaving the Book of Charts &c for
to lull any suspicions which might arise from their being no
papers in the trunks. I now wish General Dearborne to
signify to me the extent he wishes me to enter in the of my
involuntary Tour through the Internal Provences of New Spain
if it is thought proper: I can give (from the Notes and
Documents in my possession) in addition to _my Diary and
Corrispondences with the Spanish Governors relative to my
Detention, seizure of my papers, the subsistence of my party
&c_; A General Idea of the Commerce, morals, manners, Arts,
and Sciences: A correct account of their Military posts,
with a well founded estimate of the whole Militia of the
Provences; their population, and relative connexion with
each other. Also, an Idea of their Annual revenue, the
monies coined at the mint &c. Some suggestions on the sate
[state] and influence of the Catholc Religion, The
Dispositions of the Inferior Clergy--to close whole with a
view of the general tendency of the Country to a revolution,
the interests of the United States in case of that event; or
the best mode of Treating with New Spain in case of a
rupture with the Mother Country; with a General Chart of
those parts of the provinces through which we passed. This
may be takeing to wide a field for the time, the Goverment
may wish to allow me in making the report; or they may
possess, information on those subjects from pens far abler
than mine, who may have anticepated those suggestions in
their full extent.
I beg leave at this moment to call the attention of the Secy
of War to the situation of the remaining part of my
Detachment in New Spain which consists of one Interpreter, a
Young man of Good family in upper Louisiania whose salary is
500 Dollars pr--Annum, one Sergeant, one Corporal and five
privates; several of those poor fellows have become cripples
from their limbs being frozen, and are in a strange country
amongst people whose language they cannot understand, from
their long detention without any information from their
native Land, dispair will seize their minds, and will
picture to their immaginations Years of Confinement in a
foreign Country--I who was late their Companion in
dificulties and Dangers cannot so soon forget our forlorne
situation, and the obligations I am under to them for the
promtitude with which they encountered danger, and fortitude
they exhibited, and the fidility and attachment they evinced
to their Military Commander, and leader, through those
scenes; as not to exert myself to call forth the attention
of the Government in their favour: I therefore hope that
General Dearborne will take such measures as may be deemed
expediant in order to restore those poor Lads to the service
of their Country.
I am Sir With High Respect and
Consideration
Your Ob^t. Ser^t.
[Signed] Z. M. PIKE Captain
1st UStates Reg^t. Infy
The Hon^l.
HENRY DEARBORNE.
Sec. of War.
[VI'-5] The dagger set at Mountjoy's name is probably an error: see
note 2, pp. 358-360, and note 50, p. 510. Mountjoy was certainly one
of those who accompanied Pike from the Rio Conejos into Mexico, and
there is no evidence that he was dropped anywhere in that country.
Also, Pike says that only "five" privates were detained in Mexico when
he made a report to the Secretary of War, dated at Washington, Jan.
26th, 1808: see p. 853. Furthermore, witness the following hitherto
unpublished document, which I find in the archives of the War
Department, and in which Mountjoy's name does not appear:
"Return of a Detachment of Infantry of the Army of the U: States,
detained at Chihuahua, the Seat of Government for the Internal
Provinces of New Spain, by Order of the Commandant General of those
Provinces, in the year 1807.--
"Baroney Vasquez--Interpreter
William E. Meek--Sergeant
Jeremiah Jackson--Corporal
Thomas Dougherty--Private
Jacob Carter--Ditto
John Sparks--d^o.
Theodore Miller--d^o.
Patrick Smith--d^o.
"[Signed] Z. M. PIKE Captain
"1^st UStates Regt Infy"
Above in clerk's hand, Pike's signature. Rec'd at War Dept. May 3d,
1808.