When General Eaton at last finished his testimony, cross-examination by the defense was brief and to the point. He was asked if he had not long had a claim against the Government for repayment of the expenses allegedly incurred by him on his Tripoli expedition. He replied that such was the case. And was not the claim for $10,000? Eaton replied that it was. And had it been paid? Yes. When had it been paid? In March last! What the defense brought out in those few short questions was that, after years of refusal, the Congress that was in the hands of the friends of President Jefferson at last had honored General Eaton’s claim. And it had done so just when General Eaton’s testimony gave every indication of being essential to the conviction of Aaron Burr. That was all the defense wanted. It let General Eaton go. Less than a fortnight before Eaton’s appearance in court as a witness Blennerhassett wrote in his diary: “The once redoubted Eaton has dwindled down in the eyes of this sarcastic town into a ridiculous mountebank, strutting about the streets under a tremendous hat, with a Turkish sash over colored clothes when he is not tippling in the taverns.” That perhaps was a fair expression of the attitude at least of the better people of the town toward this spurious general. What a contrast to Eaton the next witness presented! In the prevailing atmosphere of suspicion and distrust of actions and motives and testimony, Thomas Truxtun stood forth as the embodiment of truth and honor. Yet no man of his time had less reason to be loyal to the Administration in Washington or more cause to resent the shabby treatment he had received from its hands. His personal circumstances were just the sort that Burr so often undertook to make capital of in the pursuit of his own questionable designs. Truxtun had had a distinguished career in the United States Navy, advancing to the rank of commodore. In the quasi-war with France he had commanded the U.S. Frigate _Constellation_ in its two victorious battles with the French frigates _L’Insurgente_ and _La Vengeance_. His professional skill was so well recognized that in 1802 he was chosen to command a squadron which had been fitted out for the war with Tripoli. As the squadron was about to put to sea Truxtun requested that a captain be appointed to command his flagship. It was a reasonable request in keeping with naval custom. But President Jefferson at that time entertained little enthusiasm for the Navy, which he regarded as a symbol of imperialism clashing with his democratic principles. So the Administration refused the request.