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Rh roosting in the pines that were to make his navy, and 80,000 soldiers were still on paper. He made a threat—and a threat so powerful that even Napoleon might think twice before he defied it.

But first he had recourse to London. From Rufus King, at that capital, he obtained the artillery for his defence. King informed him that Mr. Addington, then Secretary for Foreign Affairs, had frankly stated that in case a war should happen, it would be one of England's first steps to take New Orleans. He made it very plain that they would not keep it, but that they would give it to the United States. He concluded that America could rest assured that nothing should be done injurious to her interests.

So Mr. Jefferson, armed with the control of the Atlantic, and the guns of his brother, began a diplomatic duel with the Young Conqueror. He sent James Monroe to Paris on March 8, 1803, with instructions to buy New