France should dictate to give us the country above the river Arkansas, in order to place a barrier between them and Canada." Mr. Monroe, who had sailed March 8th, reached Paris April 12th, the day after Napoleon s conference with Marbois, and at once entered into conference with Mr. Livingston. On the night of the i2th, Marbois made to Livingston the informal overtures, as directed by Napoleon. (Annals of Congress, 1802-3, pp.
Mr. Livingston details the interview in a letter to Mr. Madison. He received the overtures with caution, and took occasion to repeat the assurance which he had frequently given: " I told him the United States were anxious to preserve peace with France; that, for that reason, they wished to remove them to the west side of the Mississippi; that we should be perfectly satisfied with New Orleans and the Floridas, and had no disposition to extend across the river.
The negotiation now passed into the regular channels, and was conducted by James Monroe, as "minister plenipotentiary and envoy extraordinary," and Robert R. Livingston, "minister plenipotentiary," on the part of the United States; and "the French citizen, Barbe Marbois, minister of the public treasury," on the part of France. After a few skirmishes in settling the price and minor stipulations, the treaty was signed May 2d, but dated April 30, 1803. The treaty consisted of three separate conventions. The first ceded Louisiana to the United States. The second provided for the payment of 60,000,000 francs to France. The third provided for the assumption by the United States of claims due from France to American citizens. The whole sum was equivalent to $18,738,268.98, exclusive of interest. The area of the whole province was 1,182,752 square miles. (Pub. Domain, p. 12.)
When the treaty was signed the ministers shook hands and pronounced this the noblest act of their lives. Yet
