leon. The opposition of Randolph caused weeks of delay. It was
not until March 13 that Madison could authorize Armstrong, minister to
France, to offer $5,000,000 for Florida and Texas. It was then too
late. Either Armstrong had been misled or Napoleon had changed his mind:
in either case, the favorable moment had passed. The purchase of Florida
was indefinitely deferred.

During these months, when relations with Spain were strained to the
breaking point, Aaron Burr was weaving the strands of one of the most
intricate and baffling intrigues in American history. Shortly after
relinquishing the office of Vice-President, Burr undertook an extensive
tour through the West. In the course of his voyage down the Ohio he
landed on Blennerhassett's Island, which an eccentric Irish gentleman of
that name had transformed into an estate. At Cincinnati he was the guest
of Senator John Smith; and there he met also Jonathan Dayton, who had
just finished his term as Senator from New Jersey. Both of these
individuals played an uncertain part in Burr's plans. At Nashville he
visited General Andrew Jackson; at Fort Massac he spent four days in
close conference with General James Wilkinson, who was in command of the
Western army--one of the most precious rascals in the annals of the
country; and at New Orleans he put himself in touch with the Mexican
Association, which had been formed by ardent individuals who looked
forward to war with Spain and the liberation of Mexico.

To men like Andrew Jackson and Daniel Clark, of New Orleans, whose
loyalty is beyond question, Burr announced his purpose to devote his
life to the overthrow of the Spanish power in America. It was a mission
which commended itself to the Spanish-hating people of the Mississippi
Valley. Western newspapers announced that he meditated some
extraordinary enterprise; and one editor hinted that he was plotting a
revolution which would end in the formation of a separate government for
the region bordering on the Ohio and the Mississippi.

Returning to the East, Burr left no stone unturned in his efforts to
find funds to finance this mysterious enterprise. He was in conference
with Merry, the British minister, and with Yrujo, the Spanish minister;
and each received a different impression as to the scope of his plans.
At one time Burr talked madly of seizing the government at Washington.
The kaleidoscopic changes of his plans baffle consistent explanation.
One thing only is clear