TO ROBERT MORRIS.

Difficulty of obtaining more Supplies. — Beaumarchais's Accounts. Funds of the United States in Europe.

SIR,

Passy, 12 August, 1782.

I have received (many of them at the same time) your sundry letters of March the 23d, April 8th and 17th, May 17th, 18th, two of the 23d and 29th. It would be a satisfaction to me, if you would likewise mention from time to time the dates of those you receive from me.

to be granted under this commission, and in the course of the treaty, I hoped it would make no difference with gentlemen, who were so well disposed to put an end to this unhappy business, as I knew him to be. He then asked, if I had instructions. I said I had, and that they were under his Majesty's hand and seal; and that by them it appeared independence, unconditional in every sense, would be granted, and that I saw no reason why it should not make the first article of the settlement or treaty. That I was sorry Mr. Jay should have hesitated so much on that head, as if it ought to have been done separately, and by act of Parliament; and now, Parliament being up, that the grant should be made by proclamation. That I did not pretend to judge whether the right and authority of a grant of that kind, so conveyed, would be proper and effectual. There seemed, however, to be one inconvenience in it, that a proclamation became an address to the Congress, and to every part of their provinces jointly and separately; and might, so far, interfere with the progress of the present commission, under which we hoped, that all pretensions would be properly and expeditiously settled. That in this matter he was a better judge than I could pretend to be. I was only sure of one thing, that the affair might be as effectually done, as in the way proposed by Mr. Jay.

"The Doctor replied, that Mr. Jay was a lawyer, and might think of things that did not occur to those who were not lawyers. And he at last spoke, as if he did not see much or any difference; but still used such a mode of expression, as I could not positively say would preclude him from insisting on Mr. Jay's proposition, or some previous or separate acknowledgment. I was glad to get clear of the subject, without pushing for further explanation, or discussion.

"The Doctor at last touched upon Canada, as he generally does upon the like occasions, and said there could be no dependence on peace

Most of your letters press my obtaining more money for the present year. The late losses suffered in the West Indies, and the unforeseen necessary expenses the reparation there and here must occasion, render it more difficult, and I am told, impossible; though the good disposition of the court towards us continues perfect. All I can say on the head of money, more than I have said in preceding letters, is, that I confide you will be careful not to bankrupt your banker by your drafts; and I will do my utmost, that those you draw shall be duly honored.

The plan you intimate for discharging the bills in

and good neighbourhood, while that country continued under a different government, as it touched their States in so great a stretch of frontier. I told him I was sensible of that inconvenience; but, having no orders, the consideration of that matter might possibly be taken up at some future time. At my coming away, the Doctor said, that, although the proper commission was not come over, yet, he said, Mr. Jay would call on me with a copy of their credentials. This being Sunday, he said the copy would be made out on Monday. On Tuesday, he must go to Versailles, being the Levee day; but on Wednesday they would call with their papers.” — Paris, August 13th. MS. In another despatch, written two days later, Mr. Oswald gave a further account of his conversations as follows.

"At proper times I said what occurred to me as necessary to bring this question to some sort of desirable period; and in particular wished to have Mr. Jay's idea of such way of declaring this unconnected ascertainment of independence, as would satisfy them.

"His former proposal of doing it by proclamation, he gave up, as able to sundry objections, needless to be here repeated. He then proposed it should be done by a particular and separate deed, or patent, under the great seal, in which my commission for a treaty might also be narrated; and that such patent should be put into the possession of the Commissioners, to be by them sent over to Congress; and accordingly Mr. Jay brought me a draft of the patent. As I could see no other way of satisfying those gentlemen, and it appearing highly necessary that some beginning should be made with them, since, until that was done, the foreign treaty could not proceed in its course, I agreed to send the draft over to his Majesty's Secretary of State by a courier express for that purpose, with my own opinion rather in favor of the proposal than otherwise. And so it was settled with the Com

favor of Beaumarchais, though well imagined, was impracticable. I had accepted them, and he had discounted them, or paid them away, or divided them amongst his creditors. They were, therefore, in different hands, with whom I could not manage the transactions proposed. Besides, I had paid them punctually when they became due, which was before the receipt of your letter on that subject. That he was furnished with his funds by the government here, is a supposition of which no foundation appears; he says, it was by a company he had formed; and, when he solicited me to give up a cargo in part of payment, he urged,

missioners. However, afterwards, in casting my eye over the preamble of the draft where it is stated, as if Sir Guy Carleton had orders to propose a treaty of peace to the Congress, and believing this to be a mistaken quotation of memory from the copy of Sir Guy's instructions in the possession of the Commissioners, and, as such, inferring an unjust imputation on the consistency of the conduct of Administration, and apprehending also that the Commissioners' entertaining a doubt of this nature might have been the reason, why they wished to be guarded with all this caution in requiring this special acknowledgment under the great seal, besides keeping their minds in suspense in all future proceedings, where confidence in good faith ought to smooth the path on many occasions to a happy termination; I say, in reflecting on these things, I thought it my duty, and I confess I was, on my own particular account, a little anxious to have an explanation of this matter.

"And, therefore, after it had been agreed, in the presence of Dr. Franklin and Mr. Jay, that I should send off the draft, I took the liberty to point out to them the said preamble, telling them, that there might be a possibility of mistake in the quotation in the last part of the paragraph. Mr. Jay said he had not the copy of Sir Guy's instructions, and acknowledged he had inserted those words from a general impression, that remained on his memory, and could not positively say but there might be some mistake. Dr. Franklin said he had the copy of the instructions, and would send a duplicate to Mr. Jay in a few hours. He did so, and I waited on Mr. Jay to see the papers. Upon the perusal, he owned he had been mistaken, and that Sir Guy's in structions went no further than an order of communication, to inform the Congress and General Washington, that his Majesty intended (or had given directions) to grant free and unconditional independence to the Thirteen States. Finding this prejudice entirely removed, and tha

with tears in his eyes, the distress himself and associates were reduced to, by our delay of remittances. I am glad to see that it is intended to appoint a commissioner to settle all our public accounts in Europe. I hope he will have better success with M. Beaumarchais than I have had. He has often promised solemnly to render an account in two or three days. Years have since elapsed, and he has not yet done it. Indeed, I doubt whether his books have been so well kept as to make it possible.

You direct me, in yours of May 17th, to pay over into the hands of Mr. Grand, on your account, such

Mr. Jay was perfectly satisfied that the whole course of proceeding in this matter was fair and consistent, I asked him, what occasion there was then for this extraordinary caution of insisting on the solemnity of such separate deed under the great seal, since a preliminary clause or article in the treaty, as always intended, might do the whole business, by making it absolute, and not depending, in the view of ascertainment, on the event of other or subsequent articles, and which might be so expressed as to remove every doubt, as to the independence being as free and unconditional as they desired it to be. In confirmation of the greater expediency and despatch of this method, and that it was the sincere intention of his Majesty to make this grant in the precise way they desired, I thought myself warranted in telling him, that I had a full power in my instructions to give them entire satisfaction on this head, and made no scruple in showing it to him, as it stood in the fourth article thereof.

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Upon the perusal, Mr. Jay said that was enough, and he was fully satisfied; and there was no occasion for any other writing on the subject; that resting upon this would save time, and he was happy, also, that this discovery of his mistake prevented their asking of his Majesty any further proof of his good intentions towards them, than what were actually meant and conveyed in those my instructions. Upon this I promised immediately to send off this representation, and also to desire leave and permission to make an absolute acknowledgment of the independence of the States, to stand invariably as the first part of the proposed treaty with those gentlemen. Meantime I think it proper to send enclosed the intended draft, (though now of no use here,) to show. by the words scored in the preamble, the grounds of those gentlemen's hesitation, and what gave occasion for a separate deed under the great seal." Paris, August 15th. MS. Letter.

moneys belonging to the United States as may be in Europe, distinct from those to be advanced for the current year. I would do it with pleasure, if there were any such. There may be, indeed, some in Holland, raised by the new loan, but that is not in my disposition, though I have no doubt that Mr. Adams will, on occasion, apply it in support of your credit. As to all the aids given by the crown, all the sums borrowed of it, and all the Dutch loans of ten millions, though the orders to receive have been given to me, the payments from the Trésor Royal have all been made on my orders in favor of Mr. Grand, and the money again paid away by him on my drafts for public services and expenses, as you will see by his accounts; so that I never saw or touched a livre of it, except what I received from him in discharge of my salary, and some disbursements. He has even received the whole six millions of the current year, so that I have nothing in any shape to pay over to him. On occasion of my lately desiring to know the state of our funds, that I might judge whether I could undertake to pay what you were directed to pay to Mr. William Lee, by vote of Congress, as soon as the state of public finances would admit, Mr. Grand wrote me a note, with a short sketch of their then supposed situation, which I enclose. You will probably have from him, as soon as possible, a more perfect account; but this will serve to show, that I could not prudently comply with your wish, of making that payment to Mr. Lee, and I have accordingly declined it; the less unwillingly, as he is entitled by the vote to inferest.

I send herewith the accounts of the supplies you have received in goods, which I promised in my last.

The sum of their value is included in the settlement made with this court, mentioned in a former letter.