The Indian Wars, 1784-1787 199 



He absolutely refused to surrender our right to nav 

 igate the Mississippi ; but, not regarding it as of im 

 mediate consequence, he proposed both to Congress 

 and Gardoqui that in consideration of certain con 

 cessions by Spain we should agree to forbear to ex 

 ercise this right for twenty or twenty-five years. 

 The delegates from the Northern States assented 

 to Jay's views; those from the Southern States 

 strongly opposed them. In 1787, after a series of 

 conferences between Jay and Gardoqui, which came 

 to naught, the Spaniard definitely refused to enter 

 tain Jay's proposition. Even had he not refused 

 nothing could have been done, for under the con 

 federation a treaty had to be ratified by the votes of 

 nine States, and there were but seven which sup 

 ported the policy of Jay. 



Unquestionably Jay showed less than his usual 

 far-sightedness in this matter, but it is only fair to 

 remember that his views were shared by some of the 

 greatest of American statesmen, even from Vir 

 ginia. "Lighthorse Harry" Lee substantially agreed 

 with them. Washington, with his customary broad 

 vision and keen insight, realized the danger of ex 

 citing the turbulent Westerners by any actual treaty 

 which might seem to cut off their hope of traffic 

 down the Mississippi; but he advocated pursuing 

 what was, except for defining the time limit, sub 

 stantially the same policy under a different name, 

 recommending that the United States should await 

 events and for the moment neither relinquish nor 

 push their claim to free navigation of the great 



