Louisiana and Aaron Burr 241 



energy and intelligence. Pinckney finally wrung 

 from the Spaniards a treaty which was as beneficial 

 to the West as Jay's treaty, and was attended by 

 none of the drawbacks which marred Jay's work. 

 The Spaniards at the outset met his demands by a 

 policy of delay and evasion. Finally, he determined 

 to stand this no longer, and, on October 24, 1795, 

 demanded his passports, in a letter to Godoy, the 

 "Prince of Peace." The demand came at an oppor- 

 tune moment; for Godoy had just heard of Jay's 

 treaty. He misunderstood the way in which this 

 was looked at in the United States, and feared lest, 

 if not counteracted, it might throw the Americans 

 into the arms of Great Britain, with which country 

 Spain was on the verge of war. It is not a little 

 singular that Jay should have thus rendered an in- 

 voluntary but important additional service to the 

 Westerners who so hated him. 



The Spaniards now promptly came to terms. They 

 were in no condition to fight the Americans; they 

 knew that war would be the result if the conflicting 

 claims of the two peoples were not at once definitely 

 settled, one way or the other; and they concluded 

 the treaty forthwith. 41 Its two most important pro- 

 visions were the settlement of the Southern boundary 

 on the lines claimed by the United States, and the 

 granting of the right of deposit to the Westerners. 

 The boundary followed the thirty-first degree of lat- 



41 Pinckney receives justice from Lodge, in his "Washing- 

 ton," II, 160. For Pinckney 's life, see the biography by Rev. 

 C. C. Pinckney, p. 129. etc. 



VOL. VIII. ii 



