in the meantime to assure me of the protection of her Majesty. I shall acquaint him, that I have not yet assumed any public character, or made it known to any person but to your Excellency, (in obedience to my instructions,) that I am invested with one, and that I shall not do either without his approbation.

As I have done in this instance, so your Excellency may be persuaded I shall in future make you fully acquainted with any negotiation I may enter upon with the Russian Ministry, because I rely upon the support you have been pleased to assure to me, in everything I may undertake, which may concern the common interests of our two countries, and which you should not think injurious to the one without being beneficial to the other. I must crave your Excellency's pardon for the length of this letter, and hope you will impute that to the desire I have to impart to you fully my sentiments and intentions touching the subject of it.

I have the honor to be, with sentiments of the highest respect, &c.

FRANCIS DANA.

THE MARQUIS DE VERAC TO FRANCIS DANA.

Sir,

Translation.

St Petersburg, September 12th, 1781.

In the letter, which I had the honor to write to you on the 2d instant, I made only a passing mention of the article of the plan of pacification proposed by the Courts of Vienna and Petersburg, which stipulates for the admission of deputies from the United States at the Congress. Per

suaded, as you appear to have been, that the American Minister would be admitted in the same manner as if their public character were recognised at the moment of their arrival, not only by the belligerent powers, but also by the mediating powers, your reasoning is perfectly just when you say, that one cannot admit and recognise the Minister of a power without recognising the independence and political existence of that power; and hence you conclude it is very possible, that the Court of Petersburg may be in a disposition to recognise voluntarily the character with which you are clothed. This reasoning is equally an evidence of the justice of your views and of your knowledge in the matter of public right. I alone have been wrong not to enter more into detail concerning the article, which you have erected into a principle. But in truth, I refrained from this, because I supposed you were already perfectly acquainted with it. I cannot better repair my omission, than to transcribe the article, as it has been sent to the Courts of Versailles, Madrid, and London. "There shall be a treaty at Vienna, under the mutual direction of the two Imperial Courts, concerning all the objects of the reestablishment of peace, &c." "And there shall at the same time be a treaty between Great Britain and the American Colonies for the re-establishment of peace in America, but without the intervention of any other belligerent parties, not even that of the two Imperial Courts, unless their mediation shall be formally asked and granted for this object."*

By this the mediating Courts intend, that your deputies shall treat simply with the English Ministers, as they have

* See the articles of pacification at large, as far as they relate to America, in John Adams's Correspondence, Vol. VI. p. 100.

already treated with them in America in the year 1778; that the result of their negotiations shall make known to the other powers upon what footing they ought to be regarded; and that their public character will be acknowledged without difficulty, from the moment the English themselves interpose no opposition. This plan has been conceived for the purpose of conciliating the strongly opposing pretensions. Have the goodness, Sir, to observe, that I do not say that I approve this scheme. I merely say, that the august mediators have adopted it, in rendering to you an account of the reasons by which they are guided. It is, therefore, clear that their design is to avoid compromiting themselves by acknowledging the independence of the United States, till England herself shall have taken the lead.

You perceive, Sir, that nothing is more conformable to my wishes, than to see Russia acknowledge the independence of the United States. If it depended on me to draw from her this acknowledgment, you would immediately have grounds to be perfectly contented with my efforts. In a word, you cannot doubt, that the Minister of his Most Christian Majesty in Russia takes a warm interest in your cause. But the more I desire your success, the more I feel myself obliged to forewarn you of the difficulties which you have to surmount, and I should betray my duty, if I were voluntarily to leave you in ignorance on so important a point. Invested, as you are, with a public character on the part of a power, whose rights and perfect independence it is my duty to recognise, it does not pertain to me to guide your advances, but the alliance of this same power with the King my master, invites me to acquaint you with all the knowledge, which I have acquired res

pecting this country, that can be useful to you. It is with the greatest pleasure, Sir, that I fulfil this duty in repeating to you, what I had the honor to say to you in my first letter, that when you shall have succeeded in surmounting the difficulties, which you may meet in causing your public character to be recognised at this Court, you will find me entirely disposed to second you in everything, which shall regard the common interest of our countries, when it shall be probable that my intervention will be agreeable to the Ministers of her Imperial Majesty.

You are too enlightened, Sir, to need my counsels, and much less my approbation. I shall confine myself, therefore, to communicating such facts as shall come to my knowledge, and which may interest you, leaving to your intelligence and discernment the task of combining them and drawing from them the plan of conduct, which you shall think most suitable, being well persuaded, that whatever course you may pursue will be for the best, and most conformable to your interests. I ought to confide to you, therefore, that we are daily expecting the answers of France and of Spain concerning the plan of pacification. When these arrive, we shall know what is intended as to the article relating to the deputies of Congress, and shall see how these observations will be received at St Petersburg. It is for you to judge, Sir, whether you think this circumstance ought to withhold you or not from making known here your political character.

I have the honor to be, &c.

THE MARQUIS DE VERAC.

P. S. I ask pardon for the delay of this answer. It has been owing to the embarrassment of translating your

letter; the Marquis de la Coste, my son-in-law, being the only person in my family who can read a little English.

TO THE MARQUIS DE VERAC.

St Petersburg, September 13th, 1781.

Sir,

On my return home last evening, I found myself honored with your Excellency's letter of yesterday. No apology could be necessary for the delay of it. It is not to be expected, that M. le Marquis de la Coste, should make a task of translating my letters, or suffer them to interfere with his engagements or avocations. It is with extreme repugnance I write to your Excellency, because of the trouble I know that it must give him; and nothing but an opinion of the necessity of doing it, has given your Excellency, or the Marquis, any trouble of that sort.

It may not be amiss to acquaint your Excellency, that just before my departure from Holland, by an unforeseen accident, I was unexpectedly deprived of the assistance of a gentleman, who both speaks and writes the French language well, and was to have accompanied me hither. Your Excellency inay be assured, I shall very readily wait some time before I enter upon the measure mentioned in my last, in hopes of being favored with the answers of the Courts of Versailles and Madrid to the plan of pacification, as soon after you may receive them, as shall be convenient to you. It is my earnest wish to form my conduct upon the fullest informations I can possibly obtain, and to avoid any step, which may have the least tendency rather to injure than to promote the interests of either country.

Your Excellency will be pleased to accept my warmest