gone to Bath in England, to recover his health, and Mr. Jay into Normandy. With great respect I have the honor to be, sir, your excellency's, &c. B. FRANKLIN. I shall bring my grandson, as you desire. DEAR SIR, TO DAVID HARTLEY, ESQ. M. P. Passy, March 23, 1783. The general proclamations you wished for, suspending or rather putting an end to hostilities, are now published; so that your "heart is at rest," and mine with it. You may depend on my joining my hearty endeavors with yours, in "cultivating conciliatory principles between our two countries," and I may venture to assure you, that if your bill for a provisional establishment of the commerce had passed as at first proposed, a stipulation on our part in the definitive treaty to allow reciprocal and equal advantages and privileges to your subjects, would have been readily agreed to. With great and sincere esteem, I am ever, &c. B. FRANKLIN. TO DAVID HARTLEY, ESQ. M.P. DEAR FRIEND, Passy, May 8, 1783. I send you enclosed the copies you desired of the papers I read to you yesterday.* I should be happy if I could see, before I die, the proposed improvement of the law of nations established. The miseries of mankind would be diminished by it, and the happiness of millions secured and promoted. If the practice of privateering could be profitable to any civilised nation, it might be so to us Americans, since we are so situated on the globe, as that the rich commerce of Europe with the West Indies, con * See the proposition about privateering, annexed to Letter to R. Oswald, Esq. January 14, 1783, p. 286. states. sisting of manufactures, sugars, &c. is obliged to pass before our doors, which enables us to make short and cheap cruizes, while our own commerce is in such bulky low-priced articles as that ten of our ships taken by you are not equal in value to one of yours, and you must come far from home at a great expense to look for them. I hope therefore that this proposition, if made by us, will appear in its true light, as having humanity only for its motive. I do not wish to see a new Barbary rising in America, and our long-extended coast occupied by piratical I fear lest our privateering success in the two last wars should already have given our people too strong a relish for that most mischievous kind of gaming, mixed blood; and if a stop is not now put to the practice, mankind may hereafter be more plagued with American corsairs than they have been and are with the Turkish. Try, my friend, what you can do, in procuring for your nation the glory of being, though the greatest naval power, the first who voluntarily relinquished the advantage that power seems to give them, of plundering others, and thereby impeding the mutual communications among men of the gifts of God, and rendering miserable multitudes of merchants and their families, artizans, and cultivators of the earth, the most peaceable and innocent part of the human species. With great esteem and affection, I am ever, my dear friend, yours most sincerely, B. FRANKLIN. DEAR SIR, TO HENRY LAURENS, ESQ. Passy, July 6, 1783. Our negociations go on slowly, every proposition being sent to England, and answers not returnng very speedily. Captain Barney arrived here last Wednesday, and brought dispatches for us as late as the first of June. The preliminary articles are ratified. But General Carleton, in violation of those articles, has sent away a great number of negroes, alleging that freedom having been promised them by a proclamation, the honor of the nation was concerned, &c. Probably another reason may be, that if they had been restored to their masters, Britain could not have hoped any thing from such another proclamation hereafter. Mr. Hartley called yesterday to tell us, that he had received a letter from Mr. Fox, assuring him that our suspicions of affected delays or change of system on their side were groundless; and that they were sincerely desirous to finish as soon as possible. If this be so, and your health will permit the journey, I could wish your return as soon as possible. I want you here on many accounts, and should be glad of your assistance in considering and answering our public letters. There are matters in them of which I cannot conveniently give you an account at present. Nothing could be more seasonable than success in the project you proposed, but we have now very little expectation. Please to give my love to your valuable and amiable son and daughter, and believe me with sincere esteem, &c. B. FRANKLIN. FROM THE AMERICAN MINISTERS, TO D. HARTLEY, SIR, ESQ. Passy, July 17, 1783. We have the honor to inform you that we have just received from Congress their ratification in due form, of the provisional articles of the 30th Nov. 1782, and we are ready to exchange ratifications with his Britannic Majesty's ministers as soon as may be. By the same articles it is stipulated, that his Britannic Majesty shall with all convenient speed, and without causing any destruction or carrying away any negroes or other property of the American inhabitants, withdraw all his armies, garrisons and fleets from the United States, and from every post, place and harbour within the same. But by intelligence lately received from America, and by the enclosed copies of letters and conferences between General Washington and Sir Guy Carleton, it appears that a considerable number of negroes belonging to the citizens of the United States have been carried off from New York, contrary to the express stipulation contained in the said article. We have received from Congress their instructions to represent this matter to you, and to request that speedy and effectual measures be taken to render that justice to the parties interested, which the true intent and meaning of the article in question plainly dictates. We are also instructed to represent to you, that many of the British debtors in America have in the course of the war sustained such considerable and heavy losses by the operation of the British arms in that country, that a great number of them have been rendered incapable of immediately satisfying those debts. We refer it to the justice and equity of Great Britain, so far to amend the article on that subject, as that no execution shall be issued on a judgment to be obtained in any such case, but after the expiration of three years from the date of the definitive treaty of peace. Congress also think it reasonable that such part of the interest which may have accrued on such debts during the war shall not be payable, because all intercourse between the two countries had during that period, become impracticable as well as improper; it does not appear just that individuals in America should pay for delays in payment which were occasioned by the civil and military measures of Great Britain. In our opinion the interest of the creditors, as well as the debtors, requires that some tenderness be shown to the latter, and that they should be allowed a little time to acquire the means of discharging debts, which in many instances exceed the whole amount of their property. As it is necessary to ascertain an epocha for the restitutions and evacuations to be made, we propose that it be agreed, that his Britannic Majesty shall cause to be evacuated the posts of New York, Penobscot, and their dependencies, with all other posts and places in possession of his Majesty's arms, within the United States, in the space of three months after the signature of the definitive treaty, or sooner if possible, excepting those posts contiguous to the water line mentioned in the 4th proposition, and those shall be evacuated, when Congress shall give the notice therein mentioned. We do ourselves the honor of making these communications to you, sir, that you may transmit them and the papers accompanying them to your court, and inform us of their answer. We have the honor to be, sir, your most obedient and most humble servants, JOHN ADAMS. B. FRANKLIN, |