Mr. Monroe, Secretary of State, to the governor of Tennessee.
September 3, 1812.
Sir: Intelligence has been received that some of the citizens of your State are collecting in the county of Giles, with the intention to make an incursion into some of the provinces of Spain, to join the revolutionary party in a contest against the existing government. As the United States are at peace with Spain, and such a movement is prohibited by law under severe penalties, the President has instructed me to communicate to your excellency this intelligence, *with a request that you would investigate its truth, and, should it appear to be well founded, give it all discountenance in your power. It is presumed that when the parties concerned in this proceeding are apprised of the sense of their Government, and, more especially, of the legal prohibition and penalties attached to it, they will not hesitate to decline it. [5]
The Governor of Tennessee.