He speedily showed all the familiar traits of the
demagogue--he was lavish in his hospitality, and treated young and old,
rich and poor, with jovial good-fellowship; so that all the men of loose
habits, the idle men who were ready for any venture, and the men of weak
character and fickle temper, swore by him, and followed his lead; while
not a few straightforward, honest citizens were blinded by his showy
ability and professions of disinterestedness. [Footnote: Marshall, I.,
245.]
It is impossible to say exactly how far his different allies among the
separatist leaders knew his real designs or sympathized with them. Their
loosely knit party was at the moment united for one ostensible
purpose--that of separation from Virginia. The measures they championed
were in effect revolutionary, as they wished to pay no regard to the
action either of Virginia herself, or of the Federal Government. They
openly advocated Kentucky's entering into a treaty with Spain on her own
account. Their leaders must certainly have known Wilkinson's real
purposes, even though vaguely. The probability is that they did not,
either to him or in their own minds, define their plans with clearness,
but awaited events before deciding on a definite policy.
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