his estimation, be calculated to affect injuriously the feelings of individuals against whom I have no complaint,”—­thus giving Mr. Davis all the discretionary power with which he claims to have been invested, and making him the judge as to what letters should be destroyed.  We have no more space to expose Mr. Parton’s blunders and sophistry.  The evidence of Burr’s debauchery, of his heartless vanity, of his utter disregard of the considerations which usually govern even the worst of men, does not rest upon the admissions of Davis alone.  Those who are familiar with a scandalous book called the “Secret History of St. Domingo,” which consists of a series of letters addressed to Col.  Burr by Madame D’Auvergne, will need no further illustration of his influence over women, nor of the character of those with whom he was most intimately associated.  The night before his duel with Hamilton, he committed all the letters of his female correspondents to the care and perusal of Theodosia, saying that she would “find in them something to amuse, much to instruct, and more to forgive.”  When in Europe, he kept a journal in which he recorded his various amorous adventures.  This book, as published, is one which no gentleman would place in the hands of a lady, and the editor tells us that the most improper portions of the diary have been expurgated; yet this journal was written, not to amuse a scandal-loving public, not for purposes of gain, but for the private perusal of Theodosia.  What can be said of a man who could expose the lascivious expressions of abandoned females and retail his own debaucheries to a gentle and innocent woman, and that woman his own daughter?  The mere statement beggars invective.  It shows a mind so depraved as to be unconscious of its depravity.

The character of Burr is not difficult to analyze.  His life was consistent, and at the beginning a wise man might have foretold the end.  Our author complains that Burr’s reputation has suffered from the disposition to exaggerate his faults.  This may be true; but it is likewise true that he has been benefited by the same disposition to exaggeration.  A character is more dramatic which unites great talents with great vices, and therefore he has been represented both as a worse and a greater man than he really was.  Burr cannot be called great in any sense.  His successes, such as they were, never appear to have been obtained by high mental effort.  He has left not a single measure, no speech, no written discussion of the various important subjects that came before him, to which one can point as an exhibition of superior talents.  A certain description of ability cannot be denied to him.  He did well whatever could be done by address, courage, and industry, joined to moderate talents.  His chief power lay in the fascination of personal intercourse.  His countenance was pleasing, and illuminated by eyes of singular beauty and vivacity; his bearing was lofty; his self-possession