To James Madison from George W. Erving, 4 November 1806 (Abstract)
From George W. Erving, 4 November 1806 (Abstract)
§ From George W. Erving. 4 November 1806, Madrid. No. 18. “The claims of Messrs Dulton & Tombarel which have been for some years agitating here before the Council of War, & which have been pressed upon the Government by repeated applications of our Ministers, are now definitively rejected;1 and Mr. Cevallos has thought proper to get rid of all further contestation upon the subject on my part, by referring such explanations of the last Consulta of the Council, as the Government thinks proper to give; to be made by his Majesty’s Minister in the United States. It has appeared to me that this decision should not pass unnoticed, & I have therefore replied to his last note in such terms as to forbid the expectation of its being favorably received by the President.
“I have herewith the honor to transmit to you copies of all the notes which have passed upon this subject since my arrival here; those of Mr. Humphries & of Mr. Pinckney, I presume, are already in the Department. The enclosed consist of seven notes—Vizt. Mr. Cevallos’s of August 10th. October 13th: & mine to him of July 10th. September 30th. October 21st. and to the Prince of Peace, of January 21st. and August 18th.2 That of September 30th. is so full upon all the proceedings of the case, as to render it unnecessary for me here to trouble you with a recital. I must add, however, that in repeated interviews which I have had on this subject with the Prince of Peace, he has given me the fullest & most explicit assurances of his effectual aid; in all which I have been deceived; or his influence has been over balanced by one more powerful. You will certainly be surprised on seeing a result, not only so extremely unjust, but so wholly inconsistent & undignified; & contrary too, as it would seem, to the dispositions of the Prince. Not being able to state any facts, I cannot venture to make any conjectures upon so delicate a subject. But Mr. Tombarel, who will be the Bearer of this, will submit to you such information on this point as he has been able to obtain. His long residence here, & the connections which he has accidentally fallen into, have undoubtedly also given him advantages which few of our Citizens have possessed before him, in acquiring a general acquaintance with the interior concerns of this Government.”
Adds in a postscript: “9th. Having demanded of Mr. Cevallos a passport for Mr. Tombarel, I received with it, the additional note, dated 5th. Inst. upon his affairs; of which a copy is enclosed.”3
RC and enclosures (DNA: RG 59, DD, Spain, vol. 10); Tr (DNA: RG 76, Preliminary Inventory 177, entry 315, Spain, Treaty of 1819 [Art. XI] [Spoliation], Allowed Claims, 1821–24, vol. 91). RC 2 pp.; in a clerk’s hand, signed by Erving. Tr in Thom’s hand through “I presume are already in the Department,” at which point it changes to Pleasonton’s. For enclosures, see nn. 2–3.
2. The enclosures (20 pp.) are copies of 1) Erving to Manuel Godoy, 21 Jan. 1806, enclosing a memorial from Dulton and Tombarel and asking Godoy to ensure that they received damages for their lost property; 2) Erving to Pedro Cevallos, 10 July 1806, encouraging the speedy compensation of Dulton and Tombarel; 3) Cevallos to Erving, 10 Aug. 1806 (in Spanish), transmitting and explaining an 8 August 1806 royal resolution; 4) the resolution (in Spanish) declaring that Dulton and Tombarel could not collect damages; 5) Erving to Godoy, 18 Aug. 1806, protesting the Spanish government’s decision and expressing surprise since Godoy had given assurances of a favorable resolution for Dulton and Tombarel; 6) Erving to Cevallos, 30 Sept. 1806, protesting the Spanish government’s decision and asking Cevallos “to resubmit the affair to his Majesty”; 7) Cevallos to Erving, 13 Oct. 1806 (in Spanish), refusing to reopen the matter; and 8) Erving to Cevallos, 21 Oct. 1806, again protesting the Spanish government’s decision. The second of the two pages of the 21 October communication is missing, with a note in the top left margin of the first page that reads: “A part of this Doct. is wanting (presume is lost).”
3. The enclosure is a copy of Cevallos to Erving, 5 Nov. 1806 (3 pp.; in Spanish; docketed by Brent; DNA: RG 76, Preliminary Inventory 177, entry 125, France, Convention of 1803 [Spoliation], Misc. Records, ca. 1798–1804, envelope 1, folder 24), reiterating that the government would not reconsider the case of Dulton and Tombarel.