The Conquest: The True Story of Lewis and Clark
I
_THE SHADOW OF NAPOLEON_
"Thank God for the safety of our country!" ejaculated Jefferson, inone of his long talks with Lewis regarding the upheaval across thesea.
In 1802 Napoleon had been declared Consul for life; May 18, 1804, fourdays after Lewis and Clark started, he had been saluted Emperor ofFrance. Then came Jena. When Lewis and Clark reached the Mandan towns,Napoleon was entering Berlin with the Prussian monarchy at his feet.
While they camped at Clatsop in those December days of 1805, and whileBaranof prayed for ships in his lonely Sitkan outpost, across seas"the sun of Austerlitz" had risen. Against Russian and Austrian,Napoleon had closed a war with a clap of thunder.
Every breeze bore news that overawed the world.
"Napoleon has taken Italy."
"Napoleon has conquered Austria."
"Napoleon has defeated Russia."
"Napoleon has ruined Prussia."
"Napoleon has taken Spain."
While Lewis and Clark were at Washington came the battles of Eylau andDantzic. In December Napoleon annexed Portugal, and the Court ofLisbon fled to Brazil, to escape his arms and to rear anew the Houseof Braganza.
How much more remained to conquer? How soon might the theatre ofaction come over the sea? Still there was England.
For a time the Napoleonic wars had thrown the carrying trade of theocean into American hands. American farmers could not reach the coastfast enough with their fleets of grain, the food for armies. Cottonwent up to a fabulous price. Enterprise fired the young republic.Ships were building two thousand miles inland to carry her products tothe ocean. She grew, she throve, and an ever-increasing inland fleetcarried to and fro the red life of a growing nation.
On the other hand, the torch of liberty, lit in America and burningthere still with calm and splendid lustre, carried by French soldiersto France had kindled a continent, sweeping like a firebrand through aconflagration of abuses. All tradition was overturning. America alonewas quiet, the refuge of the world. Every ship that touched our shoresbrought fugitives fleeing from battle-scarred fields where Europegroaned in sobs and blood.
Napoleon was now master of almost the entire coast of Europe. Did hecast regretful eyes this way? America feared it. Nothing but fear ofEngland ever made Napoleon give us Louisiana.
In May, 1806, England blockaded the French coast. Napoleon retaliatedby the Berlin Decrees, shutting up all England, interdicting thecommerce of the world.
And so, when Lewis and Clark returned, the giants were locked instruggle, like Titans of old, tearing up kingdoms, palatinates, andwhole empires to hurl at each other.
And we had Louisiana.
When Captain Lewis went to Washington he was the bearer of a mass ofpapers on land claims sent by Auguste Chouteau.
"I have had some disturbing news from Louisiana," said Jefferson. "Inthe first place, Monsieur Auguste Chouteau writes requestingself-government, and that Louisiana remain for ever undivided. Now theday may come when we shall desire to cut Louisiana up into sovereignstates,--not now, I grant, but in time, in time.
"Then the French people of New Orleans protest against American rule.Such is the dissatisfaction, it is said, that the people of Louisianaare only waiting for Bonaparte's victory in his war with the allies toreturn to their allegiance with France.
"St. Louis asks for a Governor 'who must reside in the territory,'hence I propose to put you there."
So it came about that Meriwether Lewis wrote back in February, "Ishall probably come on to St. Louis for the purpose of residing amongyou."
There was trouble with Spain. In July, 1806, everybody thought therewould be a war with her. But Napoleon was Spain's protector. It wouldnever do to declare war against Napoleon. Napoleon!--the very wordmeant subjugation.
"Why are we safe from Bonaparte?" exclaimed Jefferson. "Only becausehe has not the British fleet at his command."
Even while Congress was at its busiest, devising a government for NewOrleans, not at all was Jefferson sure of the loyalty of the French ofLouisiana.
"If they are not making overtures to Napoleon, they are implicated inthe treason of Aaron Burr."
All Washington was aflame over Aaron Burr. Only two years beforeCaptain Lewis had left him in the seat of honour at Washington. Thegreatest lawyers in the country now were prosecuting his trial atRichmond, Randolph of Roanoke foreman of the jury and John Marshallpresiding.
Borne with the throng, Lewis went over to Richmond. Washington Irvingwas there, Winfield Scott, and Andrew Jackson, "stamping up and down,damning Jefferson and extolling Burr."
Burr's friends, outcrying against Jefferson, caught sight ofMeriwether Lewis; his popularity in a degree counteracted theirvituperation. William Wirt of Maryland came down after making hisgreat speech, to present a gold watch to his friend Meriwether Lewis.
With saddened heart Captain Lewis left Richmond. The beautifulTheodosia had come to stay with her father at the penitentiary. Lewisalways liked Aaron Burr. What was he trying to do? The Mississippi wasours and Louisiana. But even the Ursuline nuns welcomed Burr to NewOrleans, and the Creoles quite lost their heads over his winningaddress. All seemed to confirm the suspicions of Jefferson, whonightly tossed on his couch of worry.
It was necessary for Captain, now Governor, Lewis, to go toPhiladelphia, to place his zoological and botanical collections in thehands of Dr. Barton. Scarce had the now famous explorer reached thecity before he was beset by artists. Charles Willson Peale, who hadpainted the portraits of the most prominent officers of theRevolution, who had followed Washington and painted him as a Virginiacolonel, as commander-in-chief, and as president, who had sat with himat Valley Forge and limned his features, cocked hat and all, on apiece of bed-ticking,--Peale now wanted to paint Lewis and Clark.
Of course such a flattering invitation was not to be resisted, and so,while Peale's assistants were mounting Lewis's antelopes, the firstknown to naturalists, and preparing for Jefferson the head and hornsof a Rocky Mountain ram, Governor Lewis was sitting daily for hisportrait.
This detained him in Philadelphia, when suddenly, on the 27th of June,the great upheaval of Europe cast breakers on our shores that made thecountry rock.
It seemed as if in spite of herself the United States would be drawninto the Napoleonic wars. England needed sailors, she must havesailors, she claimed and demanded them from American ships on the highseas.
"You _shall not search_ my ship," said the Captain of the Americanfrigate _Chesapeake_ off the Virginian capes. Instantly andunexpectedly, the British frigate _Leopard_ rounded to and pouredbroadsides into the unprepared _Chesapeake_.
"Never," said Jefferson, "has this country been in such a state ofexcitement since Lexington."
"Fired on our ship!" The land was aflame. By such white heat arenations welded.
It was a bold thing for England to disavow. But no apologies could nowconceal the fact, that not Napoleon, but England, was destined to beour foe, England, who claimed the commerce of the world.
Meriwether Lewis came home to hear Virginia ringing for war; not yethad she forgotten Yorktown.
The mountains of Albemarle were clothed in all the brilliancy ofsummer beauty when Lewis kissed his mother good-bye, and set out toassume the governorship of Louisiana.