LETTERS 
 
 ADDRESSED TO 
 
 DE WITT CLINTON", Esq. 
 
 MAYOR OF THE CITY OF NEW-YORK". 
 
 BY MARCUS. 
 
 TAKEN FROM THE POUGHKEEPSIE BAROMETER. 
 
 SIR, 
 
 Unaccustomed to the mtpmm of panegyric, I 
 
 offer no apology for the abruptness of this Address. A 
 Republican from education, from habit, and from principle, 
 I disdain the courtier. 
 
 The period, sir, is rapidly approaching, when the influ- 
 ence of truth will divest you of the ill-born honours which 
 have enshrouded your brow. The reign of proscription 
 will soon subside, and, it is to be hoped, will b3 succeeded 
 bv tolerance and forbearance, it is, however, both neces- 
 sarv and proper that you and your immediate satellites 
 should be stripped of the emoluments of office. The pub- 
 lic welfare and the voice of the people imperioush demand 
 it. The evil forebodings of a guiitv mind must long since 
 have suggested it to you. Nor will you, in the calm and 
 dispassionate moments of reflection, condemn this sentence 
 as harsh. You will acknowledge its justice, and in the 
 language of the sacred volume, exclaim, u The arrows of 
 " the Almighty are within me, the poison whereof drinketh 
 u up my spirit ; the terrors of God do set themselves in ar- 
 u ray against me." 
 
 You have had the power of dispensing favours, almost 
 without limitation : and vou have executed that trust in such 
 a manner as to excite the disgust and contempt of all mode- 
 rate and disinterested men. The venerable patriot, and the 
 war-worn soldier of ourcountrv, have been impiously thrust 
 from petty posts, to satisfy the cravings of idle and fawning 
 sycophants. You are encircled by a mercenary band, who, 
 while thev offer adulation to vour svstem of terror, are rea- 
 
 - J 7 
 
% 
 
 ciy, at the first favourable moment, to betray and desert you* 
 A portion of them are needy young men, who, without ma- 
 turely investigating the consequences, have sacrificed prin- 
 ciple to self-aggrandizement. Others are mere parasites, 
 that well know the tenure on which they hold their offices* 
 and will ever pay implicit obedience to those who adminis- 
 ter to their wants. Many of your followers are among the 
 most profligate of the community. > They are the bane of 
 social and domestic happiness. Servile and dependent pan- 
 ders, no means, however wicked, have been neglected by 
 them to accomplish their purposes, and to carry into execu- 
 tion your mandates. 
 
 Numerous are the charges which have been exhibited 
 against you. Some of them have doubtless been exagge- 
 rated, and others- have no foundation in truth. Sufficient 
 have, however, been established to bring upon you ihe odi- 
 um of your fellow-citizens. It is not my design to repeat 
 those charges, nor to load you with vulgar and unmeaning 
 , epithets. To triumph over a fallen enemy is cruel in the 
 extreme. But there is one part of your conduct which has 
 excited much conversation, and is but very imperfecdy un- 
 derstood. It betrays, however, a species of perfidy and 
 falsehood repugnant to the feelings of a man of honour, and 
 too undignified for the most grovelling wretch that receives the 
 patronage, or boasts the confidence, of even De Witt Clinton. 
 
 The subject to which I allude, is the union, as it has been 
 facetiously termed. And although I shall be brief, yet I 
 shall convince you and your associates that I am no stranger 
 to the details connected with that transaction. How I came 
 to the possession of them, is not material to you, and is un- 
 important to the public. The tale shall be a plain unvar- 
 nished one, carrying on the face of it proofs of its accura- 
 cy. My next number shall be devoted to this subject, and 
 in the presence of God and my country, I pledge myself to 
 establish vour duplicity and your perfidy. 
 
 MARCUS. 
 
 N°. II. 
 
 ' TO DE WITT CLINTON, 
 
 SIR, 
 
 IN the presence of God and my country, I am ; Vdged 
 to establish your duplicity and your perfidy- But it wiii be 
 first necessary to prove, beyond the possibility of doubt, 
 
3 
 
 that Gen. Bailey, in the negociations on the subject of a 
 Union between the Burrites and Clintonians, was your au- 
 thorized agent ; acting under your instructions ; and with 
 your knowledge and approbation, compromising the party 
 of which you are considered the chieftain. This, sir, shall 
 be done : It shall be done in such a manner as to leave no 
 place of refuge for the most sceptical of your sycophantic 
 followers. And I now solicit the attention of the honest 
 and independent of every party, while I proceed to unveil 
 a transaction, which, for political treachery and baseness, 
 could have no equal, but in the history of a tyrant that, with 
 wild and extravagant ideas, would attempt to prostrate our 
 constitution, and destroy the liberty of the citizens, that on 
 their ruins he might be elevated to official dignity and ho-* 
 nour. 
 
 About the 24th of December, 1805, Mr. Levi M 4 Keen, 
 of Poughkeepsie, arrived in the City of New- York, and 
 shortly after called on different gentlemen among his political 
 friends, stating to them that overtures had been made by the 
 Clintonians, to form an union with the Burrites, and his 
 opinion that the plan was feasible. He added, that he had 
 conversed with Gen. Bailey on the subject, and was desirous 
 that Col. Swartw out should consent to an interview for the 
 same purpose. Mr. M 4 Keen was informed that there were 
 numerous and almost insurmountable obstacles to such a 
 measure, inasmuch as the friends of Col. Burr could never 
 place confidence in the engagements of De Witt Clinton, un- 
 til he should h/yv.e done some act, indicative ot his sincerity. 
 
 It was then suggested, that as Mr. Clinton had not the 
 power of giving o.Tices at that moment, and thus publicly com- 
 mitting himself, he should give to the friends of Col. Burr, 
 pecuniary aid, through the medium of the Manhattan Bank, 
 of which he was a Director : and from which Bank they 
 were almost totally excluded, by a system of intolerance and 
 persecution. 
 
 This point, after two or three days' discussion, was con- 
 ceded as reasonable and proper. Hitherto Mr. M'Keenand 
 Gen. Bailey were the only agents ; but the affair assuming a 
 more important aspect, it became necessary that some per- 
 son residing in the city of New- York, known to be friendly 
 to Col. Burr, should undertake the arrangement ; and Col. 
 Swartwout was selected. It was, however, determined, that 
 no movement should be made, on the part of the Burrites, 
 but by solicitation. 
 
On the 5th of January, M'Keen left the City of New-York 7 
 and on the 7th Mr* Swartwout received from Gen. Bailey a 
 written note, inviting him to spend an hour with him that 
 evening, which invitation was accepted. After some de- 
 sultory conversation, the plan of terminating the division be- 
 tween the Burrites and the Clintonians was introduced by 
 Gen. Bailey. Mr. Swartwout immediately inquired whe- 
 ther he was authorized by the Mayor, or merely spoke as 
 Gen. Bailey in his private capacity. The General replied, 
 that he was authorized by Mr. Clinton. They then pro- 
 ceeded to the discussion of the subject j and their interview 
 lasted about four hours. Mr. Swartwout remarked, how- 
 ever, as a preliminary to the discussion, that the friends of 
 Col. Burr retained their respect and esteem for that gentle- 
 man ; that his friends were their friends, and his enemies 
 their enemies. 
 
 From this day until the 11th of January, the interviews 
 between Gen. Bailey and Col. Swartwout were almost daily. 
 At some of their meetings R. Riker was present j at others, 
 Pierre C. Van Wyck. During'the whole negociation, how- 
 ever, Mr. Clinton never consulted any person or persons, i£ 
 is believed, but those above named. 
 
 The character of Richard Riker is well known. His in- 
 stability as a politician is notorious. In 1798 he w T as conspi- 
 cuous as a federalist, and in the public market triumphed at 
 the success of the federal ticket in the City of New- York. 
 To De Witt Clinton, since his appointment to office, he is as 
 the pilot-fish to the shark, 
 
 P. C. Van Wyck is a young man, unacquainted with the 
 political concerns of the state, and consequently a very in- 
 competent judge of measures of policy. 
 
 Here, Sir, permit me to ask the question, are you capa- 
 ble of offering a greater insult to the old and respectable 
 members of the republican party, than you did, in thus se- 
 lecting as counsellors and advisers, two young men, to the 
 exclusion of all those who had contributed to elevate you to 
 the dignified station you now hold ? Was there not one mart 
 among that party, of years and experience, worthy your 
 confidence ? 
 
 On the ltth of January the negociation was finally con- 
 cluded. The terms and conditions of it shall be the subject 
 of my next number. Let me again request the public to 
 bear in mind the solemn and sacred pledge I have made. 
 
 MARCUS. 
 
5 
 
 N°. III. 
 
 TO BE WITT CLINTON, ES%. 
 
 am, 
 
 ON the 11th of January, as you well know, the terms of an 
 union of Burrism and Clintonianism, was concluded, and 
 they were as follows : 
 
 Firstly — That Col. Burr should be recognized by the un- 
 ion party, as a republican. 
 
 Secondly — That the Editor of the American Citizen should 
 desist from all attacks upon him or his friends ; that he should 
 advocate the union, if it became necessary, in his paper ; and 
 that he should not defend the Burrites as returning to repub- 
 lican principles, they persisting that they never had abandon- 
 ed them. 
 
 Thirdly — That the friends of Col. Burr, as it respected ap- 
 pointments to offices of honour or profit throughout the state, 
 should be placed on the same footing as the most favoured 
 Clintonians ; and that their Burrism should never be urged 
 as an objection to their filling those offices. 
 
 Fourthly — That at the approaching election in April, the 
 Burrites should have a portion of at least one third of the 
 Representatives of the City and County of New- York, in 
 the State Legislature. 
 
 Fifthly — That De Witt Clinton should see that they (the 
 Burrites) were accommodated to any reasonable amount they 
 might require in the Manhattan Bank, and that he should 
 actually procure for an individual, in the course of the next 
 week, an accommodation, in said bank, of at least 818,000. 
 
 Such were the conditions of the union, as concluded on the 
 morning of the 11th of January. Mr Swartwout having re- 
 ported the result of his negociations, it was their opinion that 
 Gen. Bailey ought to repeat them to some other friend of 
 Col. Burr. The General was noticed of this circumstance, 
 and cheerfully assented. Accordingly, on the same day, 
 about one o'clock, Mr. Mat. L. Davis accompanied Mr. 
 Swartwout, by appointment, to the house of Gen. Bailey, 
 where, in the presence of those two gentlemen, he repeated 
 the above terms as the basis of a reconciliation. 
 
 On Monday, the 13th January, the Manhattan Bank, in 
 pursuance of the above arrangement, discounted, for the 
 accommodation of a distinguished Burrite, a note of Nine 
 
6 
 
 Thousand Dollars ; and on Thursday, the 16th, another note 
 oi Nine 1 housand Dollars, tor the accommodatin of the same 
 person, making the Eighteen Thousand Ddhirs, stipulated for 
 in the 5th article. 
 
 Other friends of Col. Burr were accommodated with 
 smaller, but very considerable sums, who could not previ- 
 ously obtain One Cent from the coffers of that institution. 
 
 Having stated the facts to the 16th January, with your 
 permission, Sir, I will make the application. If Gen. 
 Bailey was not your authorized agent, acting with your 
 knowledge and approbation, how did it happen, Sir, that he 
 should undertake to pledge the funds of the Manhattan Bank, 
 of which he was not a Director, for the accommodation of 
 Mr. Burr's friends, to the amount of thousands and twenties 
 of thousands of dollars ; and that those promises and pledg- 
 es should be faithfully performed ? How did it happen, Sir, 
 that the Gen. should, on the 11th January, agree that a loan 
 should be effected by that bank on the 14th for $9000, and 
 another loan on the 16th for an equal amount, and yet not 
 be acting under your authority ? But it does not stop here. 
 The General pledged himself that you should procure dis- 
 counts for other friends ot Col. Burr, and they also were fur- 
 nished in various instances, and it is believed in every in- 
 stance, where applied for previous to the rupture. I repeat 
 it ; let it be recollected, Gen. Bailey was not a Director of 
 that Bank. He had no controul over its funds. You was 
 a Director ; and you have your puppets there, that you move 
 as you please. The conclusion is irresistible. Gen. Bailey 
 must-have acted by your authority ; and the man who asserts 
 a contrary position, after reading this, must stand convicted 
 as a knave or a fool. 
 
 One observation more, and I close this number. If the 
 facts which I have detailed respecting your directorship are 
 uniounded, they are susceptible of refutation. The books 
 of that institution are at your command. The Vice-Presi- 
 dent of the Company, James Arden, of all tools, is the most 
 contemptible. Procure his certificate to the contrary. I 
 have stated the precise days of the week and of the month, 
 and it would require but very little labour to make the re- 
 ference ; but this I know will never be done ; for they are 
 unanswerable truths which I have related. 
 
 Having established the fact, that Gen. Bailey was your 
 authorized agent, I proceed to show your duplicity towards 
 
your own partv, and your perfidy towards the friends of Col- 
 Burr. Let those men designated Clintonians, particularly 
 in the City of New-York, carefully peruse my next publica- 
 tion, and if they retain one atom of laudable pride ; one ray 
 of self-importance ; if they are not sunk and debased be- 
 neath the native dignity of man, they will spurn your future 
 confidence, and no longer remain the miserable automatons 
 of a treacherous chief. 
 
 MARCUS. 
 
 N°. IV. 
 
 TO DE WITT CLINTON, ESQ. 
 
 SIR, 
 
 ON the 11th Janurary, the negociations, as already stated, 
 were terminated ; and on the 1 3th the conditions, in part, 
 carried into operation, by discounts in the Manhattan Bank. 
 Mr. Clinton having thus given a pledge of his sincerity ; it 
 was agreed, that an interview should take place between him 
 and Col. Swartwout. Thursday evening, the 16th, at six 
 o'cleck, at the house of Gen. Bailey, by arrangement, they 
 met. About 7 o'clock, Mr. Clinton's counsellors and advis- 
 ers, Riker and Van Wyck, came into the room to express 
 their heartfelt satisfaction at this Union of Honest Men. . 
 The)- remained about an hour and then retired. 
 
 It had been previously determined that the leaders of the 
 Clinton party should manage their own men in their own 
 way, and that no communication should be made by the 
 Burrites, to the followers of Mr. Clinton. 
 
 I have now arrived at a stage of this transaction, where your 
 duplicity shone resplendent. No apologv is necessary to you 
 for stripping the vizard irom your face : But it is a duty I 
 owe to the community, to acknowledge, that nothing but the 
 most gross perfidy on your part, couid justify me in deve- 
 loping a transaction, which, for the honour of human nature, 
 ought ever to have remained in the most profound oblivion. 
 
 Here I request the reader, and particularly the present 
 representatives from the City and County of New-York, to 
 pay attention to dates. They are important. They will 
 serve to satisfy even- candid and dispassionate man, that on 
 great questions Mr. Clinton has very few confidants, and they 
 are not to be found among the gentlemen who have the 
 honour of representing the metropolis of the state. 
 
 ▲ 4 
 
I 
 
 On the 11th, the union was concluded ; on the 13th, a 
 part of the conditions were carried into operation ; on the 
 16th, Mr. Clinton and Mr. Swartwout had their interview; 
 and yet, on the 17th, there was not an individual memher of 
 the Legislature, Riker excepted, who had the most distant sus- 
 pision of such an event having taken place ; hecause on that 
 day, the 17th, and the next, both James Warner, and Francis 
 Cooper, were busily employed with Riker, in endeavouring 
 to bring about this desirable reconciliation. These men 
 were honest and sincere ; but they will perceive, while com- 
 municating and planning with Riker as to the best means to 
 accomplish the object, he was laughing in his sleeve at their 
 credulity ; and triumphing with Van Wyck and Clinton, at 
 the facility with which the zvell-born and the greats too fre- 
 quentl\Mmpose upon the weak and the ignorant. Such must 
 ever be the degraded state of men, who implicitly follow de- 
 magogues* 
 
 On or about the 13th, seven days after the union had 
 been concluded, a dinner was given by Mr. Clinton, at 
 which the members of the Legisixture, with other leading 
 republicans, were present. At this dinner the subject of 
 the union was the topic of conversation. Here it was that 
 De Wilt played his part with great adroitness. \He could 
 scarcely hazard an opinion, as to the policy of the \ieasure. 
 — He was willing to sacrifice his resentments and his feel- 
 ings for the public good ; and was determined to be govern- 
 ed by his friends. Consummate duplicity ! The prevail- 
 ing sentiment was, that the measure would be, in a political 
 view, highly advantageous. No man appeared more grati- 
 fied with the prospect of success than William W. Gilbert ; 
 and all who spoke of it, were willing to make an effort to 
 accomplish it. The company retired with these impres- 
 sions, each doubtless complimenting their great chief on 
 his liberality of sentiment and disinterested patriotism ! 
 
 To comment on this scene of duplicity and fraud is cer- 
 tainly not requisite. If the adherents of Mr. Clinton are 
 still willing to remain his dupes, they have no right to com- 
 plain, if stigmatized by the upright and independent of eve- 
 ry party, as the most base and grovelling panders that ever 
 disgraced any country. 
 
 Where is the pride of William W. Gilbert? And where 
 the high and towering spirit which once glowed in the bosom 
 of many of our old and respectable republicans ? In short 
 
9 
 
 where is the man in the party who does not feel a degree of 
 mortification and chagrin, at being excluded from the confi- 
 dence of h.s leader, while such men as Mr. Riker and Mr. 
 Van Wvck are selected to decide on its most important ar- 
 rangements ? 
 
 The statement which I have given will account for the 
 appointment of Mr. Van Wyck, Recorder of the City of 
 New-York, and the unexampled efforts which were used to 
 procure for him that situation. 
 
 Such, sir, has been your duplicity towards your friends. 
 They have good and cogent reasons for complaint. The 
 public have strong claims to a full and complete knowledge 
 of this transaction ; because it serves to develope an impor- 
 tant trait in your character. Whether that developement 
 will redound to your honour or your fame, is not my pro- 
 vince to decide. It is a question I refer to a political tribu- 
 nal, trom which there Is no appeal — the voice of the People. 
 In my next 1 shall detail your deportment, your language, 
 and your promises, to the friends of Col. Burr, at the house 
 of Gen. Bailey, on the evening of the 24th January, where 
 you met them by appointment. 
 
 MARCUS. 
 
 N°. V. 
 
 TO DE WITT CLINTON, ES%. 
 
 sir, 
 
 I HAVE already shown that the fifth article of the trea- 
 ty w r as complied with by you. So, also, was the second, 
 which relates to the Editor of the American Citizen. He 
 adhered to his orders on that occasion, when menaced with 
 political ruin by the populace. For years had he unceasing- 
 ly vilified not only Col. Burr, but all his friends : they were 
 charged with an abandonment of principle ; and represent- 
 ed as the most vile and daring faction in the community. 
 But no sooner was the alliance formed, than these men were 
 complimented and panegyrized for their eminent services as 
 republicans, and their inflexible attachment to their friend. 
 With this servile inconsistency staring him in the face, how 
 can Cheetham prate of his independence of sentiment? It 
 must be remembered, he has published to the worid, that both 
 parties kept him ignorant of their arrangements ; that neither 
 considered him entitled to their confidence. Why should 
 
10 
 
 they? It is evident, however, that both conceived they 
 had a right to contract for him, and to agree between them- 
 selves what he should and what he should not publish. 
 And yet this man talks of tools and hireling Editors ! 
 
 You will pardon, sir, I trust, an occasional digression 
 from yourself, when you perceive that my attention is en- 
 gaged by your chosen friends, and most intimate associates. 
 
 From the 10th until th* 24th of January, nothing mate- 
 rial, relative to the Union, transpired. On the evening of 
 the latter day it was agreed you should again meet, at the 
 house of Gen. Bailey, some of Col. Burr's friends. At the 
 appointed hour Col. Swartwout, Mr. M. L. Davis, and Pe- 
 ter Irving, attended. Shortly after they were seated, Mr. 
 Clinton's name was announced. He entered the room, to 
 the astonishment of the congregated Burrites, accompanied 
 by Ezekiel Robins. This gentleman was conspicuous as 
 an advocate of Col. Burr ; but he had not been apprised by 
 his friends of the reconciliation ; they were, however, em- 
 barrassed. After a few minutes pause, Mr. Clinton ex- 
 plained. He stated that he had considered it his duty to 
 call on Mr. Robins, and to inform him of the happy termi- 
 nation of the contest between u two sections of the Republi- 
 can party that at his request, Mr. Robins had accompa- 
 nied him home, from whence he had conveyed him in his 
 (Mr. Clinton's) carriage, to the house of Gen. Bailey. 
 Such, sir, was your zeal, at the commencement of this cele- 
 brated union, to convene the friends of Mr. Burr, and to 
 meet them. 
 
 At this meeting your deportment was frank and open ; 
 and if I am not much deceived, you made an impression on 
 the friends of Col. Burr, then present, that you were sincere, 
 and that your future conduct would be correct and honour- 
 able. You ardently expressed your wishes for a perfect 
 amalgamation of the parties ; and in promises you were lavish. 
 Burrites, you said, must be sent, at the next spring election, 
 from the city and county of New-York, to the State Legis- 
 lature. Mr. Peter Townsend must represent Orange coun- 
 ty — Mr. Joseph Annin, of the senate, must be chosen a 
 member of the Council of Appointment, if sufficient interest 
 could be made for him — Levi M'Keen, of this town, should 
 be appointed clerk, in the room of Gilbert Livingston, whom 
 you would remove from office. To detail all your friendly 
 assurances at this meeting, would be tedious to me, mortify- 
 
\ 
 
 11 
 
 ing to you, and not interesting to the public. Certain it is, 
 that your ingenuity and talents were called into operation to 
 impress the Burrites with the opinion that you was ardent, 
 sincere, and determined on a system of policy that should 
 prove gratifying to them, and flattering to Col. Burr. 
 
 There is one circumstance which occurred at this meet- 
 ing, that demands my notice, and the most sincere animad- 
 versions of your party. With respect to the men that enjoy 
 your confidence, it is decisive. As Mr. Riker would say, 
 " It puts the question at rest for ever." 
 
 You were informed that the friends of Col. Burr had been 
 in the habit of communicating and consulting freely with 
 each other ; that they believed that system of policy most 
 correct ; and you were asked with whom of your party they 
 should confer during your absence, if events should require 
 conference. You replied, " General Bailey, and P. C. Van 
 ' Wyck" Yes, sir, these were the men selected by you as the 
 leaders of the republican party, and the guardians of that 
 cause, during the absence of Mr. Riker and yourself. These 
 men were to decide on the measures and plans proper to be 
 adopted and pursued, and to express your sentiments and 
 wishes to the Burrites. And yet your deluded followers 
 have had the temerity to assert that Gen. Bailey was not your 
 authorized agent. Little, very little do they know of your 
 movements. And if they are determined to remain igno- 
 rant : if they will not read, examine, and decide for them- 
 selves, they merit such leaders as Wortman, Clinton, and 
 Cheetham - r and may they long feel the effects of their sys- 
 tem of intolerance, rebounding upon their own heads ! I 
 forbear, because I have neither time nor inclination to com- 
 ment on the indignity offered to the republican party, in se- 
 lecting the two gentlemen you did, as the proper and only 
 persons for the Burrites to confer with, when arrangements 
 were necessary to be made with a view to the approaching 
 election, or on any other political subject. 
 
 With respect to the proceedings at Dyde's and Martling's, 
 I shall at present say nothing. The public had not, even 
 there, accurate knowledge of the movements of your satel- 
 lites. I shall now notice your arch and jesuitical letter of 
 the 3d of March, dated Albany, and addressed to Gen. 
 Bailey, with the prompt and honourable answer you received 
 from Col. Swartwout, Peter Irving, and M. L. Davis. — 
 These documents are before me ; you also possess them. If 
 
12 
 
 I misrepresent, publish them to the world : they will confirm 
 ever)' sentence I utter, and they will decide unchangeably 
 your political doom. 
 
 MARCUS. 
 
 TO DE WITT CLINTON, ES%. 
 
 SIR, 
 
 I KNOW not whether contempt or indignation is the 
 strongest emotion excited in my bosom, on perusing your 
 letter of the 3d of March, addressed to Gen. Bailey : Con- 
 tempt for the mean and hypocritical manner in which you 
 endeavoured to screen yourself from popular odium — indig- 
 nation for your false and ungentlemanly indignities. Nor 
 could I comment on this production without asperity, or 
 showing temper, if my mind was not occasionally diverted 
 from it to the frank, manly, and dignified answer, you re- 
 ceived from Col. Swartwout, Peter Irving, and M. L. 
 Davis. 
 
 On the 20th of February, the Burrites and Clintonians 
 met at Dyde's, and partook of a supper prepared for the oc- 
 casion, and which has since been termed the Union supper. 
 At this entertainment a number of toasts were drank com- 
 plimentary to Col. Burr and his friends. The publication 
 of them produced considerable agitation in the Clintonian 
 ranks. The flame was fanned by a few artful and designing 
 men, who were not invited to the festival, and were, there- 
 fore, disappointed and chagrined. These men, in connexion 
 with others that were honest in their views, procured a 
 meeting at Martling's on the evening of the 24th February, 
 where some violent and inflammatory resolutions were pas- 
 sed against the Union, and its author. You perceived, Sir, 
 that your popularity would sustain a serious, perhaps an ir- 
 recoverable shock, unless you could completely free yourself 
 from the appearance of having any knowledge of the nego- 
 ciations on the subject of the union. To effect this, and 
 thus save from nolitical ruin the chief of the faction, it was 
 determined, as a peace-offering, to sacrifice Gen. Bailey.—. 
 With this view your letter of the 3d of March was written. 
 You intended that the General should exhihibitit to the dis- 
 contented and dissatisfied. 
 
13 
 
 In the letter alluded to, you remark that you approve of 
 the proceedings at Martling's ; that you hope the imprudence 
 of your friends at Dvde's will be overlooked ; that to re- 
 ceive the Burrites, is " universally agreeable jr but that this 
 reception should be tainted with promises of office, &c. 
 would be ruin to your cause. You add, that it was report- 
 ed, a treaty had been formed, consisting of five articles, one 
 of which was, that Wm. P. Van Ness should be Secretary 
 of State ; and another, that Col. Burr should be Governor, 
 and that this had been shown to Mr. Eppes, the President's 
 son-in-law. You close, by saving, " Prompt and efficient 
 *' measures should be taken to contradict these infamous 
 " falsehoods. Perhaps the most proper mode would be, to 
 " require frank and explicit declarations from gentlemen of 
 * the Burr party." 
 
 This letter was addressed to Gen. Bailey. Why to him? 
 Because throughout the whole transaction, he was your agent, 
 and acted under your control. And when this letter was 
 written, you presumed he would understand the object. Un- 
 fortunately, however, for you, the General, in the plenitude 
 of his wisdom, showed it to the three gentlemen already 
 mentioned. Their prompt and energetic answer must have 
 been very unexpected. Did you, Sir, imagine, when you 
 wrote your letter, that to make promises to the Burrites 
 would be ruin to your cause I Or did you intend to gull 
 your adherents, through your agent, Bailey, into a belief that 
 you had made no promises P Your design evidently was, to 
 produce an impression that no promises or engagements 
 had been made by you. This was a trick of perfidy and 
 deception ; because through your agent you made all the 
 promises enumerated in my third letter, and personally, on 
 the 24th of January, you promised, if possible, to make Jo- 
 seph Annin, a member of the Council of Appointment ; and 
 positively to make Levi M 4 Keen, Clerk of Dutchess, in the 
 stead of Gilbert Livingston, whom you was determined to 
 remove from office. Deny the truth of these assertions, if 
 in any point of view they are incorrect. They were made 
 in the presence of Gen. Bailey, Ezekiel Robins, John 
 Svvartwout, M. L. Davis, and Peter Irving. I repeat it; 
 these gentlemen were all present when you promised, pre- 
 vious to the meeting of the Legislature, on the 24th Ja- 
 nuary, the offices specified ; and yet according to your hy- 
 pocritical letter of the 3d of March, to make promises, 
 would dishonour and ruin your party ! 
 
14 
 
 You next refer to a treaty which had been shown to Mr. 
 Eppes, and mention only two of five articles, it is said to con- 
 tain. Were the other three correctly stated I You close 
 your letter by suggesting the propriety of frank and explicit 
 explanations from gentlemen of 'the Burr party. Did these 
 gentlemen afford you the explanations required ? And were 
 they satisfactory I I will state, as briefly as possible, the sub- 
 stance of their reply. 
 
 They admit that there were no conditions relative to Col. 
 Burr, or Mr. Van Ness, of the nature mentioned in yours of 
 the 3d March ; and add that the reconciliation was " on 
 terms of perfect equality.™ They also state that this circum- 
 stance was within your own knowledge. How within your 
 own knowledge ? Because your agent, Gen. Bailey, negoci- 
 ated, and you consummated the union. — They then proceed to 
 require, in return, explanations from you, on certian points, 
 and inform you that their intention is to make your reply 
 public, u with a view to obviate erroneous impressions." 
 
 " It is understood, (say they) that yon and your friends 
 " countenance areport, that the exclusion of Mr Burr is acon- 
 " dition of the reconciliation. We have, on the contrary, 
 " maintained that no such suggestion was made ; that no 
 " sentiment, but of respect for Mr. Burr, was expressed by 
 " the gentleman, who acted in behalf of your party : and 
 " that in the early stages of the adjustment, the friends of 
 " Mr. Burr pointedly disclaimed any idea of the kind." 
 What was your conduct on the receipt of this answer ? Did 
 you proceed to discuss the points in dispute, or to defend 
 the position you had taken ? No, Sir, after inviting, you 
 shrunk from the investigation. You know that the exclusion 
 of - Mr. Burr was never contemplated ; that his friends would 
 have spurned at, and treated with disdain, any such proposi- 
 tion. You knew the promises you had made on the 24th of 
 January, and you was therefore incapable of replying, 
 
 Had I not already exceeded the limits prescribed to my- 
 self, I should say much more on this subject, but I fear to 
 prove tedious. If, however, I have misrepresented your 
 letter, or the answer you received, I again call upon you to 
 publish them. The letter of Swartwout, Irving, and Davis, 
 does them great honuor. It contains some independent sen- 
 timents, correctly and elegantly expressed. A few observa- 
 tions more, and I close these papers. 
 
 MARCUS* 
 
vyrftr N\ VII. \ " V*.^ * 
 
 TO DE WITT CLLYTO^, ESQ. 
 
 SIR, 
 
 I have performed the task which I imposed upon myself, and 
 I trust there is not an impartial, or disinterested man, in the state, 
 who peruses these letters with attention, but will admit that I 
 have established the following points. 
 
 First— That Gen. Bailey was your authorized agent, and with 
 your knowledge and approbation negociated, and entered into 
 stipulations and engagements with the Burrites, as to the basis of 
 an union. 
 
 Secondly. — That acting as your agent he made certain pledges 
 and promises, which pledges and promises were immediately per- 
 formed by you. 
 
 Thirdly. — That from the 1 1th January, the day on which the 
 negociations were terminated, until some time in February, you 
 acted towards your own friends, with unprecedented duplicity, in- 
 asmuch as you not only kept them ignorant of your arrangement 
 with the Burrites and your meetings with Mr. Swartwout, but in 
 a sportive and ungenerous manner, imposed upon their credulity, 
 causing them to use their exertions in bringing about that recon- 
 ciliation which you had previously bargained for, and consummated, 
 and thus placing them before the Burrites in the light of con- 
 temptible tools. 
 
 Fourthly. — That you excluded from your confidence every 
 member of the legislature, Riker excepted ; that you never deign- 
 ed to consult any of the eld and experienced republicans, as to 
 the propriety or policy of an union with the Burrites, until after 
 that union was formed ; and that your only counsellors and advis- 
 ers were, Gen. Bailey, R. Riker, and P. C. Van Wyck. 
 
 Fifthly. — That you displayed great zeal to satisfy the Burrites 
 on the 24th January, by calling on Ezekiel Robins, one of their 
 most ardent friends, at his house, conveying jhim to yours, 
 and from thence to Gen. Bailey's, in your own carriage. 
 
 Sixthly. — That on the evening of the 24th January, at the house 
 of Gen. Bailey, in the presence of Jive gentlemen already named, 
 you promised to put into the council of appointment, if sufficient 
 interest could be made for him, Joseph Annin, of the Western 
 District ; to remove from office the late Gilbert Livingston, and 
 to appoint in his stead, Levi M'Keen. 
 
 Seventhly. — That on the aforementioned evening you were 
 asked, bv the friends of Col. Burr, with whom thev could confi- 
 dentially communicate, if communications were necessary on the 
 subject of the approaching election, or any other political busi- 
 ness^ during your absence, and you referred them to Gen. Bailey, 
 and P.-C. Van Wyck, as your confidential friends, thus excluding^ 
 the whole of that party, of which you are considered the leader. 
 
16 
 
 Eighthly. — That on the 3d of March, you addressed a letter to Ge». 
 Bailey, fraught with perfidy to the Burrites, and duplicity to your own 
 friends, — attempting %0 make the tatter beieve you were ignorant of the 
 negotiations with the friends of Col. Burr, whereas you had personal inter- 
 views with them, and had beribnaUy made them promise*. 
 
 Ainthkjj — That in this ietter you invited frank and explicit explanations 
 on the subject from gentlemen of the Burr party, and thus insinuated that 
 you were ready to give them. 
 
 Tenthly. — That your letter was promptly and explicitly answered on the 
 12th March, by Col. Swartwout, Peter Irving, and M. L. Davis, who re- 
 quested from you explanations as to certain reports said to be countenanced, 
 by you, informing, that it was their intention to make your letter public, 
 " with a vrezo te remove erroneo"s impressions tr.at after seeking this inves- 
 tigation, you shrank from the contest, and never dared to commit yourself 
 in reply, knowing that such committal must inevitably invoive you in an 
 awkward dilemma. 
 
 Some inquiries will possibly be made, how an ob cure individual should 
 possess an accurate knowledge of all the facts contained in tbejse letters? 
 I answer, that during the whole of the negotiation, two Burrites of respectabi- 
 lity, from the Western District, were in the city of New-York, and con- 
 sulted as to every measure adopted by Col. Swartwout. With both these 
 gentlemen I have conversed freely. From Levi M'Keen I revived a part 
 of my information, and from gentlemen in New -York, other details. In 
 short, my authorities, I am perfectly satisfied, are, in every particular, 
 correct. But in most instances I have made references. If I have unsta- 
 ted any facts, where I have l-eferred to particular gentlemen, 1 call upon 
 those gentlemen, as men of honour, as tin guardians of truth, and as the 
 enemies of defamation, to point out my errors and to correct them. I may 
 be assailed by the envenomed shafts of party slanderers, hut I shall disre^ 
 gard them. Neither my avocations nor my disposition would justify a long 
 and tedious controversy. 
 
 Believing that I have comp'etely estab'ished the point - above enumerated, 
 it remains for the people to decide between us I well know, Sir, in this- 
 attack, the disadvantages under which I labour. I am willing to admit 
 their force ; and I have only to regret that our countrymen, in similar ca- 
 ses, are not more frequently influenced by the objections which will be 
 urged against me. 
 
 It will be said, Marcus is an anonymous writer, unknown to the public,, 
 perhaps influenced by a spirit of revenge, and regardless of truth : And it 
 will be added, Mr. C inton is the leader of a party, high in their confideuce r 
 and possessing their esteem. These, with many other arguments, will be 
 urged by your adherents. They are reasonable, and deserve the most 
 mature and deliberate consideration of the people. But they deserve it in 
 a pre-eminent degree, at this crisis, when the press is unbiusiiingly prosti- 
 tuted to the vilest purposes ; when the most spotless'characters in society, 
 are unfeelingly torn and lacerated to accomplish party views; and when pub- 
 lic taste seems so corrupted and vitiated, that nothing but the lowest slanders 
 are palatable. I ask only a dispassionate and calm decision. If the facts I 
 have stated are not well established ; if a doubt remains on the mind of 
 any man — then would Marcus, who knows your guilt, p'ead with that man 
 for your acquittal. I repeat it, our countrymen are too prone to listen to 
 the voice of defamation, and too willing to sacrifice our best and most use- 
 ful patriots on presumptive evidence. But if on the other hand, the 
 charges I have made against you are well supported, and you appear to 
 them guilty of duplicity and treachery, it is their duty to pass upon you a 
 stern, but just sentence. I have only to say to them, " See that what thou 
 receivest as truth, be not the shadow of it; what thou acknowledgest a» 
 convincing, is too often but plausible. — Be firm, be constant, determine 
 for thyself j so shalt thou be answerable onlv for thine own weakness." 
 
 MARCUS.