the minds of some that I am not the son of Thomas Williams may be mistaken, and the story of Van Derheyden of Albany, in 1814, has created in my mind an idea that I may be an adopted child, as I find the Iroquois have adopted more than 16 persons of both sexes of the Canadian origin.

"March 24. I have written to Mr. L. of Boston, and sent the letters containing the mysterious news in relation to my origin. Although this melancholy subject was communicated to me in 1841, and now again, it is renewed and brought before me from another quarter, I may truly say, that as often as the subject is brought to the mind the eyes of the afflicted man are filled with tears.

"Yes, in 1841, when the awful intelligence was communicated to me, my blood seemed to chill and my heart to rush into my throat, and I became affected in a manner which I now find it difficult to describe. May I humbly submit to the will of Heaven. O for more grace and Christian resignation! "March 27.

Last evening there were several of the Oneidas lodged at my house, who made great inquiries after the history of the primitive church. They were referred to the day of Pentecost, and dwelt largely upon it. They were very thankful for the instruction.

"March 28. Went to Grand Kakalin, called upon Mr. Grignor, and dined with him, and soon Governor Doty joined with us.

"This evening I am invited to go to the Oneida settlement, to attend the funeral of one of the warrior chiefs. He was a communicant April 8. Went to Green Bay, and was at the Fort, and had a long con versation with He is an infidel. May the Lord

show him the error of his ways.
"I have had many such people to deal with."

In the foregoing journal, Mr. Williams alludes to having written twice to the Rev. Joshua Leavitt, of Boston, in relation to the communication from the South. Learning that Mr. Leavitt is now a resident in NewYork, I called on him, and inquired what he remembered on the subject. He kindly gave me the required information, and wrote me two letters, from which I extract the following:

"During my residence in Boston, from 1842 to 1848 inclusive, I was in correspondence with Mr. Eleazer Williams, and was visited by him several times, partly for relationship and partly on a matter of business, in which he wished my assistance. In the spring of the year 1848, I received from Mr. Williams one or two letters, in one of which was contained a statement concerning the decease of an old Frenchman, who declared that the Dauphin of France was still living and in this country. This statement I procured to be printed in a small daily paper in Boston, called the Chronotype, where it appeared on the 12th April, 1848. In the autumn of the same year, Mr. Williams called on me, and greatly astonished me by saying that he himself was the supposed Dauphin. He seemed much disturbed and distressed about the matter, and even terrified at the possible consequences of the disclosure, and I thought wished not to have any further publication on the subject if it could be avoided. He also expressed the regret he should feel in losing his cherished relationship to the Williams family, and declared that he should always feel towards them an unabated affection."

In the other letter, Mr. Leavitt, speaking of the disclosure made to him in the autumn of 1848, says that Mr. Williams " marked, with sadness, on the disquiet the

re

affair had caused him, interfering with his chosen work of the ministry, and even filling him with alarm for his personal safety." In his distress of mind, it was natural for him to apply to Mr. Leavitt, as this gentleman is connected by marriage with the Williams family, and had shown him much kindness in his troubles. A slip from the Chronotype, of April 12, 1848, is before me, containing the statement referred to, which is nearly literal in its agreement with the journal of Mr. Williams, except that the portion relating to himself is omitted, and the Island of Cuba is referred to in connection with Bellanger, which may probably have arisen from confounding the word Helena with Havana. This journal throws a curious light on the workings of Mr. Williams's mind. Deeply affected at first by the revelation of the Prince, he seems, in course of time, to have learned to treat the subject with indifference. It appeared to him entirely improbable. But the same tale comes from another quarter; and the first impression having faded away, it is looked upon as a novelty, and has no weight with him. Slowly his mind gathers itself up; awakens its recollections; renews its impressions; combines things widely separated, whose connection it did not at first perceive; and then anxiety begins, and he has recourse to a friend for advice; timidly unfolds to him his griefs and his apprehensions, and wishes to hush the affair up lest it should injure him.

4. That the French ambassador Genet in the presence of Dr. Francis and others, acknowledged that the Dauphin was both alive and in this country, and in the State

of New-York in 1817.

I am happy to be able to confirm in the fullest manner, the statement of Dr. Francis by the authority of Dr. Hosack, and of the family of the late ambassador, from whom I learn that his decided opinion was that the Dauphin was alive and in this country, and an article in the Mirror relates literally many particulars mentioned to me by Dr. Francis, as having been stated by Genet in connection with the main fact.

6. As to Col. de Ferrier, during the reign of Louis XVIII., he went to France, carrying four Indians with him, and previous to leaving this country, he obtained from Mr. Williams, three separate signatures to certain documents, ostensibly by way of attestation, and one of these Indians told Mr. Williams on his return, that he had been introduced into the presence of some person of distinction, whose name he did not know, and asked many questions concerning the condition of things at Oneida, and among others who was the religious teacher of the Indians, to which he replied, Eleazer Williams,-he was further asked if he was certain that he was there, and on his answering in the affirmative, was dismissed. The journey of de Ferrier to France, is a well-known fact, and also that after this he was in frequent correspond

consultation, and it was supposed the marks on the knees were scrofulous. On referring to Beauchesne, I found it necessary for the identity of the Dauphin, that there should be the scars of tumors also on the wrists and elbows, and asked permission of Mr. Williams to examine his arms, when I found them in the spots indicated, though he himself had not observed them. I then obtained a formal examination of his person by Drs. Francis, Kissam, and Gerondelo, who, after consultation, and without knowing Desault's opinion, that the Dauphin was not affected with scrofula, came to a similar conclusion with respect to the origin of the scars on the body of Mr. Williams, as the reader will perceive from their certificates below.

He

New-York, February 12, 1858. REV. MR. HANSON: Dear Sir,-We respectfully inclose to you the following statement as the result of an examination made at your request. The physical development of Mr. Eleazer Williams, is that of a robust European, accustomed to exercise, exposure to the open air, and indicative of the benefit of generous diet, and a healthy state of the digestive organs. might readily be pronounced of French blood. IIis general appearance and bearing are of a superior order: his countenance in repose is calm and benignant: his eyes hazel, expressive and brilliant, and his whole contour when animated indicates a sensitive and impressible organization. His cerebral development is nowise noticeable, and his mental manifestations are in harmony therewith. If any peculiarity is predominant, it is his apparent indifference to the pretensions or claims of his advocates. There are no traces of the aboriginal or Indian in him. Ethnology gives no countenance to such a conclusion. This fact is verified by anatomical examination, and no unsoundness of mind or monomania has been manifested, by any circumstance evinced in communion with him. His age might be estimated as approaching seventy years. After a careful examination of the several cicatrices which are to be seen in various parts of the surface of his body, more especially those discernible about the articulations of the knees, we are fully convinced that the joints themselves are in a perfectly normal condition, and that they have never been affected by scrofula or any deep-seated inflammation. The scars which are more numerous on the right than on the left leg, are colorless and superficial, indicating an ulcerative process of the integuments at an early period of life: these marks show no strumous diathesis, but might equally be the result of early bodily severities inflicted by, or consequent upon a protracted confinement in impure or deteriorated air, restricted or bad diet, and other deprivations, or by the habits of a wandering and imbecile youth amidst the wilds of nature. The remnants of diseased action found on the arms, above the elbows and about the wrists, though less conspicuous are of a like character. The face in the vicinity of the brows both of the right and left eye, exhibits proofs of wounds. These manifestations of injury cannot so easily be traced to a definite period of life, inasmuch as they are in some measure masked by the eyebrows themselves: but they partake of the character of incised or lacerated wounds. The cicatrix on the superior part of the right side of the forehead being somewhat more than an inch in extent, would appear to have originated from a simple incised wound.

With all consideration, your most obedient friends, JOHN W. FRANCIS, M.D. RICHD. S. KISSAM, M.D.

REV. J. H. HANSON.

New-York, February 12th, 1853. Rev. and Dear Sir,-You have requested me as the medical adviser of the Rev. Eleazer Williams, to render an account of his personal characteristics, and the marks of former disease visible on his body. He has a lofty aspect, strongly marked outline of figure, obvious ly European complexion and a slight tinge of scrofulous diathesis. His age seems to border on seventy-his share of native intellect is above mediocrity, and his mind, sound in its integrity and pertinent in judgment, is as unaspiring as his heart is cordial and affectionate. The limit of his ambition appears to be faithfully to fulfil his mission as a minister of Christ. The scars I have examined are located on both knees, particularly on the right-both elbows corresponding in character with those on the lower articulationsand both arms near the wrists, more obscure than the former. They must all have occurred in childhoodand, particularly those about the knees and elbows, are such as would be left by ulcers, produced by a morbid condition of the system brought on by unwholesome diet, exposure to damp foul air, and great depression of mind. They are in no sense scrofulous, but might have been accelerated, perhaps slightly aggravated by a superficial taint of that particular diathesis. With a sincere hope you may succeed in settling the question which the most palpable facts have propounded,—I remain, very respectfully, yours truly, B. GERONDELO, M.D. "20. That Williams was idiotic at the age of thirteen or fourteen."

"21. That the Dauphin, at the age of ten, was reduced to the same condition by ill treatment."

"22. That since the recovery of his reason, faint, dreamy remembrances of the past have returned to the mind of Mr. W., corresponding to known scenes in the Dauphin's history."

In using the word "idiot," with reference to Mr. Williams, I failed in strictness of speech; but my meaning was sufficiently evident. A cloud rests upon his early life, which he has never been able to lift. Memory goes back with distinctness no further than to the plunge in Lake George. Previous to that he has some vague notion of the Indians roasting chestnuts at Christmas time, of lying on a carpet with his head leaning against the silk dress of a lady, of being in a room where there were persons magnificently dressed, and seeing troops exercising in a garden; but all these recollections have a faint, dreamy, and intangible character. A highly respectable lady, who was a school-mate of his, and who has signed a certificate of the facts, though too sensitive to permit her name to appear without necessity in print, tells me that, when a boy, Williams was fair and sprightly, and her father used frequently to say he looked more like a Frenchman than an Indian. One day he came in heated with exercise, and with the perspiration standing on his face. Glancing in the mirror, he started and turned round suddenly and asked her if she knew where he got those scars. She replied, "I suppose in infancy." He said her supposition was true, and that they were connected in his

mind with painful images, which he did not like to dwell on. Though generally lively and good-humored, he was subject to fits of thoughtfulness and abstraction, very unusual in a boy, and would sink down occasionally in a deep reverie, and when asked the cause of it, would reply that there were painful ideas about his childhood in his mind, which he could neither get rid of nor exactly understand.

In a communication, also from Mrs. Julia H. Jenkins, containing much which may be of future interest respecting the childhood of Mr. Williams, I am informed that, though naturally cheerful, still a tinge of thoughtful sadness would steal over him when interrogated with regard to his early history, and he would say that he did not remember much about it, and it seemed to give him much pain that he could not. The prevalent opinion in the vicinity seemed to be that he was a French boy, who had been stolen from his family by the Indians, and brought away at so early an age as to render his recollections of any other than Indian life vague and unsatisfactory. These two ladies are entirely unknown to each other; and the latter writes the recollections of her mother, who resided at Long Meadows, when young Williams first came to Mr. Ely's. It appears that at this time he was in very delicate health, subject to fits of shivering in the warmest weather; and one day Miss Grosvenor finding him in this state, wrapt him in a blanket and put him on the sunny side of the house, for which attention he gratefully said, “Missie Gomie very kind, poor Lezau." In conversation with Mr. Williams I also learn that in 1836, an Indian woman, still living at St. Regis, showed him an old hymn book, which it is hoped may be preserved, in which, before the recovery of his mind, he had scribbled some letters, and got a flogging for so doing from her husband, having, in his absence, seized a pen, dipped in the ink, and set himself to write. I find from several persons, that he made very rapid advance in his studies when put to school, and was particularly fond of writing and drawing. When I read to Mr. Williams the account given by Beauchesne, of Bellanger showing him pictures, he said, "Now there is a thing which I seem to recollect. I have some idea of being pleased with pictures in a dark room."

"23. That a decree for the banishment of the son of Louis XVI. passed the French Convention in 1794."

My authority for this statement was Adolphus, who wrote his Biographical Memoirs of the French Revolution, in 1799. He says that in the month of December, 1795, Leguinio "moved that the Committee of Government should devise the means of sending the son of Louis out of the territories of the Republic. This was decreed, but no steps were taken to put the decree in execution." According to M. Beauchesne, who doubtless is correct, this motion of

Leguinio's was referred to the committees, who were divided in opinion, but finally reported against it. It is quite sufficient for my purpose to show that the project was in agitation; since, if the end could be accomplished more safely by indirect means than by direct, the former would necessarily be chosen.

25. That there have been various attempts made to personate the Dauphin."

Herr Naundorf is the only one among the Dauphin pretenders who has made much impression on the world, and he puzzled, rather than convinced, his adherents. I am of opinion that the curious history now opening on the attention of the public, will afford the best clue to the mysteries of Herr Naundorf's life. The principal strength of his cause lay in the impossibility of proving that the Dauphin was dead, and in the knowledge which the pretender possessed of the interior of the Temple. Now I give the following, merely as theory, to account for what is strange about him and his claims. According to his own story, a boy was introduced into the Temple and instructed to play the part of the Dauphin, and after the removal of the latter, carriages, with boys, were sent in different directions, so as to baffle pursuit and inquiry. It may be that so far he told the truth, that he was one of the instruments employed; that as such he was put in possession of many secrets of the Dauphin's career, and became familiar with the arrangements of the Temple, and that all this supplied him with the means of originating and carrying on the deception. The more I consider Herr Naundorf's history, the more I am inclined to think that there must be some such personal connection as this with the main thread of events. Of course a boy of the Bourbon type of countenance would be selected to personate a Bourbon. It would be easy to find plenty such in Paris, where royal blood must have run by many a bye-path into the gutter, and can therefore afford no just ground of astonishment, however startling a phenomenon it may be to find among the St. Regis Indians, a man combining in his person the physical and mental characteristics, and even the familiar gestures of the princes of Bourbon and Hapsburg. Again, if the Dauphin's escape from the Temple was contrived and connived at from political motives by the two dominant parties, nothing could be more improbable than that he would be left wandering about Europe with credentials of identity in his pocket. We can accept no theory whatever which violates entirely the fundamental probabilities of human action. If the Dauphin were taken out of the Temple alive, be would necessarily be sent out of Europe, and not be permitted to remain at large in the centre of political strife, to defeat the very object of removing him. There could be no more natural place to send him to than America, and when there, no more