CHAPTER IV.
INTRIGUES AND LAND SPECULATIONS--THE TREATIES OF JAY AND PINCKNEY, 1793-1797.
The Current of Tendency.
Throughout the history of the winning of the West what is noteworthy is the current of tendency rather than the mere succession of individual events.

The general movement, and the general spirit behind the movement, became evident in many different forms, and if attention is paid only to some particular manifestation we lose sight of its true import and of its explanation.

Particular obstacles retarded or diverted, particular causes accelerated, the current; but the set was always in one direction.

The peculiar circumstances of each case must always be taken into account, but it is also necessary to understand that it was but one link in the chain of causation.
The Causes of the Various Separatist and Filibustering Movements.
Such events as Burr's conspiracy or the conquest of Texas cannot be properly understood if we fail to remember that they were but the most spectacular or most important manifestations of what occurred many times.

The Texans won a striking victory and performed a feat of the utmost importance in our history; and, moreover, it happened that at the moment the accession of Texas was warmly favored by the party of the slave-holders.