ADDRESSES OF MAJOR LACEY 317 



When Bonaparte became the First Consul and dicta- 

 tor of France, war with Great Britain had become un- 

 avoidable. Our minister at Paris, Mr. R. R. Livingston, 

 opened up negotiations to secure the navigation of the 

 river and the title to the land near the mouth of the 

 stream. He especially desired to purchase New Orleans. 

 Mr. Jefferson, however, wanted Florida as well as the 

 mouth of the river. Spain was still in possession and the 

 time seemed ripe for a treaty. The phenomenal and pro- 

 phetic mind of the young Napoleon alone seemed to com- 

 urehend the future possibilities of such a treaty. James 

 Monroe was hurriedly called by Jefferson from his Vir- 

 ginia home and sent as a special envoy to act with Mr. 

 Livingston, and they were authorized to buy New Or- 

 leans, the mouth of the river, and Florida for $2,000,000. 



But a new man had arisen in the affairs of Europe, a 

 man of few words, but of prompt, vigorous, and decis- 

 ive action. Napoleon promptly took the whole negotia- 

 tion out of the hands of the wily and corrupt Talleyrand 

 and placed it with Marbois, his minister of finance. Mar- 

 bois had been in the United States and had acquired the 

 most priceless of all treasures, an American wife, and the 

 affair was in friendly hands. The First Consul fairly 

 staggered our commissioners when he proposed to sell the 

 whole domain for $15,000,000. Here was a region un- 

 peopled by civilized men, extending from the Lake of the 

 Woods to the Gulf, and of uncertain boundaries east and 

 west, but unquestionably larger than Great Britain, Ger- 

 many, France, Spain, Portugal, and Italy combined. 



When the uncertainties of the boundaries were refer- 

 red to, Napoleon said: "If there were no uncertainties 

 in the limits it would be necessary to invent some." He 

 realized the value of an elastic boundary. He could put 

 his own construction upon that. Great Britain has found 

 it convenient in Alaska. Napoleon knew how untenable 



