Shortly after being selected as Alcalde, probably the third of April in 1800, Alexander invited some of his neighbors to his plantation to dine and collect some timber from his land. He called it a log Rolling. In addition to his invited guest, Gabriel Burris and six of his friends came as uninvited guest. We have a record in the Spanish West Florida papers of Alexander's version as well as a disposition from two of his invited guest. I'll attempt to paraphrase what happened that evening.
Alexander knew Gabriel Burris who had been brought up amongst the Choctaw Indians and was known to be a "master among blackguards". Certainly he was not within Alexander's circle of friends. Burris was not invited to the log rolling but came anyway. He soon became intoxicated and attacked one of the invited guest, a Mr. Sharp, but was restrained. Later he attacked another guest, MR. LONG, and had him down biting him on the finger and trying to gouge his eyes out. Alexander heard this disturbance and, as the Alcalde, ordered those around to separate the two. When his order was ignored he ran to the house and asked his nephew to help him rescue Long. They were able to do this with some considerable difficulty and brought Long back to the house. According to two other guest, Kazy Hutchinson and Anna Spillars, Long was bloody and his finger had been bitten off. They heard Burris outside cursing and calling for Mink to come outside so he could whip him and Bookter and all of Bookter's protectors. Although Alexander and Mary Bookter told Mink to stay inside he ventured too close to the door. Burris dragged him out into the yard by his hair and began beating him. Alexander tried to get other guest to help, but half of them were against Mink and the others were afraid to get involved. Alexander tried to jump into the fight but was beaten, dragged down and trampled on. He called on his slaves to help, and by the time he was able to get Mink into the house, Mink's eyes were swollen shut, some of his hair was torn out, and he had bite marks on his arm. Burris was then running after the slaves cursing and saying that he would kill them and their damn masters now that they were "free of Spanish law." (There was evidently an unconfirmed rumor that France had taken control of West Florida. As mentioned previously, Napoleon did coerce Spain into returning Louisiana to France in 1800, but he didn't take possession until the first of December 1803. Twenty days Louisiana became part of the United States, but Spain continued to hold West Florida.) The next morning Burris came by to tell Mink he was sorry and to ask Mink to forgive him. However, the Alcalde had other ideas. Burris was arrested and spent the next two years jailed at Fort San Carlos in Baton Rouge.
Alexander Bookter was undoubtedly one of the most important men in Spanish West Florida and he seemed to have a knack at keeping his name in the news. Since the Spanish were so meticulous at keeping records, we are fortunate be able to reconstruct many of his activities from documents in the Spanish West Florida papers held in the Louisiana archives.
In August of 1803 a petition was signed by friends of Burris asking for his release after two years and three months of confinement. Another petition in October of 1804 was signed by fifty one citizens of Saint Helena District and charged that Alexander Bookter was disloyal to the Spanish government and cruel and unjust to the community at large. Alexander responded in a letter to the Governor that stated in part, "God knows I have been a true friend of the government and have acted with honor and truth." The petition asked that Bookter be expelled from Spanish West Florida. During the investigation into this affair in February of 1805 disposition from four signers of this petition was taken. John Glasscock, William Bell, Daniel Raner, and William Bickham all stated that the signatures on the petition was not their own. Only William Bickham actually knew how to write. William Bell stated that, "Alexander Bookter had told the government that all the residents of St. Helena wanted to rise in rebellion." I don't know the conclusion of this investigation but we do know that Alexander Bookter was not expelled because in October of 1807 he was selling town lots in Bookter's Landing.
In a letter to Governor Grand-Pre dated the thirteenth of March, 1805 he refers to himself as "a resident and previously Alcalde of St. Helena" so his term as Alcalde must have been terminated after the investigation. In this letter he asked the Governor to free a slave named Nelly. This request seems to be out of character for Alexander because he was one of the major slaveholders in Spanish West Florida. Perhaps this shows a softer side of Alexander that was not always evident. Nelly had been sold by Joseph Bradford to SAMUEL LONG and then stolen from Long by Bradford. According to several dispositions recorded in the Spanish West Florida papers Bradford had been apprehended and along with Nelly was being taken to New Orleans in January of 1803 on a schooner that belonged to Bookter when they were allowed to escape. We don't know much more about this case, but when Long tried to recover Nelly, Alexander appealed to the Governor on her behalf. He stated that Long *****had left the dominion and was living with the Indians.******
SPANISH WEST FLORIDA, U.S ARCHIVES OF THE SPANSIH, 1782-1816
Having inquired from several citizens and from the alcade [- 433] Michael Jones about SAMUEL LONG, all of them told me that he has been gone about two months, some saying he has gone to Pensacola and others to the Choctaws. This is all that I have been able to find out.
Joseph Bradford sold a negress named Patty to SAMUEL LONG then stole her from him. He took her from the Spanish territory of Baton Rouge to the American territory of New Orleans, on the Schooner of Alexander Bookter, former alcade of St. Helena.
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/2454/
http://www.marsjournal.com/Geneology.htm
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LeFleur still operated his profitable boating trade, securing commissions from General William C.C. Claiborne, Governor and Commander-in-Chief of the newly organized (1798) Mississippi Territory to carry “certain goods sent by the United States as presents to the Choctaw Nation of Indians.” He also carried messages to the Governor of the Province of Louisiana. In addition to being entrusted with the delivery of merchandise making up the government annuity payments to the Choctaw Nation, Louis was asked to be present at the occasions when terms of treaties were negotiated. Louis “Leflow” is listed as one of the witnesses to the Treaty of Mount Dexter on November 16, 1805, which conveyed large amounts of land in what is now southeastern Mississippi and southwestern Alabama, including much of the western portion of Clarke County, Alabama, to the United States.https://jesseyancy.com/louis-lefleur-frontiersman/
