organizing this office, that you may, by seeing my powers, know what attention you are to pay to my letters, which will consist of two sorts; the one written by me without consulting Congress, in which, however, I shall always govern myself by what I suppose to be their sentiments; the other, written and submitted to their inspection, so that you may have the highest evidence of its corresponding with their views. When this is the case, I shall always inform you of it. This letter has been read in Congress, and of course contains no instructions, which they disapprove. I shall send you a packet of newspapers with this. I should have told you, that your salary will in future be paid here. I shall receive it as your agent, and vest it in bills on Dr Franklin, and remit them to him, so that you may draw upon him quarterly. I shall send him one quarter's salary by this conveyance, commencing the Ist of January last, and ending the 1st of April last, and considering myself as the agent of all our foreign Ministers, I shall follow your directions relative to the disposition of your appointment, until you shall think it expedient to name another. Your most obedient humble servant, ROBERT R. LIVINGSTON. ROBERT R. LIVINGSTON TO FRANCIS DANA. Sir, Philadelphia, May 22d, 1782. Your letters, from the 28th of July to October 15th, have been read in Congress. I have reported an answer,* but they have not yet agreed on it, and I do not care to let * This refers to the preceding letter of May 10th. this vessel go without a line, however hastily written, to you. You will receive with this the newspapers, which contain some information upon a delicate point. The administration of Britain having been changed, they will endeavor to represent themselves as popular in America, to induce a belief that we will, under their auspices, be desirous of returning to our connexion with them. Be assured, that the change in their administration has produced none in the sentiments of America; they are immovably fixed in their determination to support their independence, and not to violate their alliance with France. The Assembly of Maryland and the Council of this State have passed resolutions to that effect; it will be the language of all, as soon as they meet. Congress have refused a passport to Sir Guy Carleton's Secretary, which was asked in order that he might be the bearer of a letter to Congress. Neither army has taken the field, of course I have no military operations to communicate. Your salary will in future be paid here, where your agent will vest it in bills on Dr Franklin, quarterly, upon whom you will draw accordingly. I shall consider myself as agent for all our foreign Ministers, and transact the business accordingly for you, unless you should choose to appoint some other. I enclose a cypher, which you will use if it arrives safe, till I have leisure to send you a better. I am, Sir, your most humble servant, ROBERT R. LIVINGSTON. ROBERT R. LIVINGSTON TO FRANCIS DANA. Philadelphia, May 29th, 1782. Sir, You will receive herewith a letter of the 10th instant, which having been submitted to Congress, was returned yesterday to this office, together with the resolution, which I have the honor to enclose expressive of their sense of the sentiments contained in the letter, and of the line of conduct you ought to pursue. Having written to you lately, I have little to add. We have not been able to settle a cartel with the British for the exchange of prisoners, of whom we have a balance in our hands to the amount of ten thousand. They refuse to pay the great sums, that we have advanced for their maintenance, which we make a preliminary to an exchange. It is not improbable, that the Germans will be made free of the country, sold for three years, to defray this expense, which they most of them wish, as they express a great inclination to settle here. I have the honor to be, &c. ROBERT R. LIVINGSTON. TO ROBERT R. LIVINGSTON. St Petersburg, June 28th, 1782. Sir, Immediately after we had received intelligence here of the important change in the councils, and in the system of Great Britain, I consulted my correspondent (the Marquis de Verac) upon the expediency of disclosing my public character, without further delay to her Majesty's principal Minister. He gave me his opinion freely and candidly. For your information, I need only say, that it is the same in every respect with his former one, which you will find in his letter to me, of the 12th of September last, and in mine of September 15th to the President of Congress. I cannot take upon me to say, that his opinion is not well founded. My private sentiment then was, that that event could not fail to occasion a correspondent change in her Majesty's system also; but I knew my means of information were not as good as those of my correspondent, and that though every one seems to think the mediation of her Majesty, between Great Britain and Holland, was in effect at an end, yet in form it was still kept up, so that the reasons against disclosing my character, mentioned to you in my letter of March 5th, might still be supposed to have some influence. This determined me to conform to his advice. However, I could not think of resting totally inactive in this state of things; though I thought it not prudent to make any official communications, yet it could not be amiss to endeavor at this time to turn, if possible, the thoughts of those in government upon our affairs, and to refute certain assertions of our enemies, which had remained without contradiction here, and by this means to prepare the way for the former. It might at least serve to sound the sentiments of the Ministers. With these views I have thrown the few following reflections upon paper, three translations of which into French, have, I am assured, been placed in the very hands I wished to place them, and that they have not been unacceptable. Reflections. "When Great Britain engaged in a war with her late Colonies, either to obtain allies, or to prevent new enemies rising up against her, she was desirous to have it believed that she was contending in the common cause of all the maritime powers of Europe. Spain she endeavored to alarm by suggesting, that the revolt in America would be a fatal example to all her Colonies in the new world, and if it had not such an effect upon them, they would at least be liable to be conquered one after another, by their new neighboring empire, so that in one way or the other Spain would lose her American Colonies, if the independence of the United States should be established. To Holland she held up the danger her peculiar commerce, and her navigation would be exposed to, from the enterprising spirit of the Americans, who would not fail to become soon her rivals throughout all Europe. To the nations about the Baltic she alleged, that the free commerce of America would be highly prejudicial to their commerce, because many of the commodities of America, being of the same nature with theirs, they would everywhere in the markets of Europe come into concurrence with them. She has been more particular with regard to Russia, and asserted, that this empire can derive no possible benefit from a free and direct commerce with America, and that with or without this commerce, Russia will be in the same circumstances, because Great Britain who now takes off, will continue to take off, all the superfluous productions, and manufactures of Russia. "The conduct of Spain, and of Holland, is the best comment upon the declarations of the British, which re |