of the case, laid on that
luckless admiral the whole burden of blame for the failure of the
scheme of invasion. With front unabashed and a mind presaging certain
triumphs, Napoleon accordingly wheeled his legions eastward to
prosecute that alluring alternative, the conquest of England through
the Continent.

APPENDIX

[_The two following State Papers have never before been published_]

No. I. is a despatch from Mr. Thornton, our _charge d'affaires_ at
Washington, relative to the expected transfer of the vast region of
Louisiana from Spain to France (see ch. xv. of this vol.).

[In "F O.," America, No. 35.]
"WASHINGTON,
"26 _Jany._, 1802.

"MY LORD,

"... About four years ago, when the rumour of the transfer of
Louisiana to France was first circulated, I put into Mr.
Pickering's hands for his perusal a despatch written by Mr. Fauchet
about the year 1794, which with many others was intercepted by one
of H.M. ships. In that paper the French Minister urged to his
Government the absolute necessity of acquiring Louisiana or some
territory in the vicinity of the United States in order to obtain a
permanent influence in the country, and he alluded to a memorial
written some years before by the Count du Moutier to the same
effect, when he was employed as His Most Christian Majesty's
Minister to the United States. The project seems therefore to have
been long in the contemplation of the French Government, and
perhaps no period is more favourable than the present for carrying
it into execution.

"When I paid my respects to the Vice-President, Mr. Burr, on his
arrival at this place, he, of his own accord, directed conversation
to this topic. He owned that he had made some exertion indirectly
to discover the truth of the report, and thought he had reason to
believe it. He appeared to think that the great armament destined
by France to St. Domingo, had this ulterior object in view, and
expressed much apprehension that the transfer and colonization of
Louisiana were meditated by her with the concurrence or
acquiescence of His Maj'^{s} Gov^{t}. It was impossible for me to
give any opinion on this part of the measure, which, whatever may
be its ultimate tendency, presents at first view nothing but danger
to His Maj'^{s} Trans-Atlantic possessions.

"Regarding alone the ai