The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 41, July 1937 - April, 1938 Page: 151
383 p. : maps ; 23 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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Andrew Jackson and the Erving Affidavit
matic dispatches were transmitted by the Department of State to
the House on June 14, 1844, Adams could write in his diary that
the documents gave "abundant evidence to falsify the pretension
of George W. Erving that he could have negotiated a boundary
even to the Colorado." The purported Erving letter of February 5,
1832, which Ingersoll published in his spurious "Report," also
exercised Adams' suspicion and sarcasm. He doubted Jackson's
profession to the effect that he had "lost," or mislaid, Erving's
paper of 1829: "Ay, what has become of it? Why it was sup-
pressed, and a counterfeit substituted [in 1832] in its place." As
the extant copy of Erving's paper has no asterisk on page 18, it
hardly can have been the copy purportedly given Jackson by
Erving in 1832.
The purported Erving letter dated "Kalorama, Feb. 5, 1832,"
has a very fictitious atmosphere in every respect-in the unlikeli-
hood of Lewis' visiting Erving-who was living generally at Boston
at that time, according to his statement in 184413-in the rather
incredible way in which Lewis allegedly broached to Erving the
object of his visit, in Erving's recollection of the exact day (Decem-
ber 17, 1829, allegedly) on which he had originally given Jackson
his "Summary," etc. The writer ventures to suggest the following
two alternative hypotheses as the most likely explanations of the
strange Erving letter of February 5, 1832: (1) that Erving was
at Washington at that time and actually did write the letter anI
so connive at and assist Jackson's hoax, Jackson perhaps approach-
ing Erving in this matter through Lewis as intermediary,14 or (2)
that the purported Lewis-Erving interview was purely imaginary,
and that the Erving letter of February 5, 1832, was a Jacksonian
forgery. Our present knowledge does not permit a too definite
interpretation of this ambiguous transaction; the problem will be
clarified considerably whenever it shall, if, indeed, it can, be ascer-
tained just where Lewis and Erving actually were at the time of the
13Kalorama was situated only a short drive by carriage from Washington.
Why Erving was at Kalorama at this time (January-February, 1832)-if
he actually was-further research may some day determine. One wonders
if Erving came to Kalorama (i. e., Washington) at Jackson's wish.
14It may be noted that Jackson in January, 1832, had Lewis write to
Major Henry Lee (who was then living at Paris) to solicit perjured testi-
mony from Lee to support Jackson's falsehood in another matter. See the
writer's "Jackson's 'Rhea Letter' Hoax," in Journal of Southern History,
II, 492-495.151
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Texas State Historical Association. The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 41, July 1937 - April, 1938, periodical, 1938; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth101103/m1/167/: accessed May 7, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.