of the war, the period which is pointed out to me as the only proper one, and when most certainly nothing will remain to be hazarded.

If the present negotiations for a peace should happily succeed, I shall have occasion for the money mentioned in my letter of September 5th, before I can expect an answer from Congress on that subject, and I shall apply to Dr Franklin and Mr Adams to advance it between them. It may not be amiss again to inform you, that by the express allowance and order of her Majesty, there is to be paid by every power entering into any treaty with her, six thousand roubles to each of her Ministers signing the same; and it is now understood, that there shall be four signatures on the part of her Majesty, viz. that of Count Ostermann, the Vice Chancellor; Count Woronzow, the President of the College of Commerce; M. Bakournin, Vice President of the College of Finances, and M. Besborodko, Secretary of the Private Affairs, or Particular Cabinet of her Majesty. Matters of this sort were formerly secret and gratuitous. They have now changed, their nature become public, and are demanded as of right, at least no treaty can be otherwise obtained. And care is taken to make it the interest of most powers, to form a commercial treaty with this Empire by declaring in the new tariff, which is just published, that all nations not having such a treaty shall pay the duties, one half in rix dollars, and the other in the money of the country. This has heretofore, under the old tariff, been the rule for all nations except the British, who by their treaty obtained the right of paying all the duties in the money of the country. This privilege is extended to Denmark by their late treaty, and will doubtless be made common to all nations, which shall

choose to enter into a commercial treaty with her Majesty, and thus the British will lose the principal benefit of their treaty before it expires, viz. 1786.

I have the honor to be, Sir, with great esteem, &c.

FRANCIS DANA.

ROBERT R. LIVINGSTON TO FRANCIS DANA.

Philadelphia, December 17th, 1782.

Sir,

Your distance, and the difficulty of conveying letters to you, make it proper at times to take a retrospective view of what has passed, and by that means of supplying in part such despatches as may have miscarried.

The last year closed with important advantages gained over the southern States. The winter was unproductive of any events in this country that merit your attention.

The alteration in the British system of warfare in this country, in consequence of their reduced strength, and in pursuance of the victory obtained by the opposition in the House of Commons, has rendered the campaign inactive on the part of the enemy, and the few posts they possessed were so well fortified and garrisoned as to render an attack by us, without the assistance of a fleet, very hazardous. The reasons we had to hope for such assistance kept us from taking measures to act offensively in proper time. But though the summer has passed off without any brilliant military exploit, it has by no means been unemployed. Such attention has been paid during these moments of lei-. sure to the discipline of the troops and recruiting the army, that they are at this time more numerous than they have been at any period during the war. So per

fect are the officers and men in every military, manœuvre, that we may, I believe, without vanity, boast to have an army not inferior to any in Europe. We should not know how to give this praise to our troops, but from the facility with which every foreigner gives it, notwithstanding national prejudices.

Among the military events which mark this year, are the evacuation of Savannah, and the measures taken for abandoning Charleston. The poor wretches, whom fear or interest led to join the enemies of their country, find themselves sufficiently punished to merit even our pity. With blasted characters and ruined fortunes, they are seeking new habitations under the line or near the pole. Numerous cargoes of them are sent to the West Indies and Halifax, to St Augustine and Penobscot.

But it is of moment to you, to be acquainted with the political character of your country and their sentiments with respect to the faith that is due to treaties. By knowing how far you can rely upon them yourself, you acquire a degree of confidence in making engagements for them, and you can venture to pronounce upon their conduct on every trying occasion, without waiting for intelligence from this side of the Atlantic. You need not be told, that the British nation, suffering themselves to be deceived by their wishes, and misled by the misrepresentations of those that were interested in the continuance of the war, have believed, or at least pretended to believe, that a majority of the people wished well to their cause. Neither our forms of governments, which gave their partisans annually an opportunity to declare their sentiments, and if most numerous to change their rulers; nor the number that repaired to their standard when hoisted in eleven of the Thirteen

States; neither the determined and successful opposition hitherto given to the forty thousand heralds, which they sent to proclaim their champion, encourage his friends, and bid defiance to his foes, had sufficed to cure them of this delusive hope. They still imagined that a few kind words would close the wounds that they had seven years been widening. General Carleton was sent over to speak to them. So little doubt had he that they would be well received, that he was about to send out Mr Morgan, his Secretary, without soliciting a passport, and was much surprised when Colonel Livingston, who was then a prisoner, informed him that he would be stopped at the first post; and still more so, when upon a subsequent application, he found that Congress-refused to have any intercourse with him; and referred all negotiations to Europe, where they could treat in conjunction with their allies.

But nothing serves more strongly to show the little confidence the people of this country have in the promises of Great Britain, and their fixed determination not to break their engagements with their allies, than the resolutions passed on the subject by the respective legislatures without consulting each other, and independent of directions. from Congress; it proves beyond contradiction, to those who know how our legislatures are formed, and the frequency of their elections, that these sentiments are the sentiments of the people; and that, too, at a time when they most sincerely wished for peace. If anything was wanting to give the last blow to British credit in this country, it was their late change in their administration; from which Mr Fox and others are excluded, for avowing the sentiments that their Commissioners, Digby and Carleton, sol

emnly pronounced in a public letter to be those of their Sovereign.

The other general objects, which it is necessary for you to be acquainted with, are the commerce, the finances, and the government of this country. The first suffered considerably in the beginning of this year, by the great vigilance of the British cruisers, but has since been very flourishing and successful. None of those wants are known, which prevailed at the beginning of this controversy. Our stores and warehouses are amply supplied with everything, that can administer to the necessities or luxuries of the people. The West Indies and Europe furnish a ready market for all we raise beyond what is necessary for our own consumption. The embargoes and restrictions, which were once thought necessary to enable us to obtain a scanty supply for our army, have been unknown among us for three years past; and yet a most ample provision has been made both for our troops and those of our allies. Our trade with the Havana has furnished considerable sums in specie; paper is entirely out of circulation, if we except the bank paper, which, being payable at sight in specie, is equal to it in value. So extensive has this circulation been, that the managers, not long since, published a distribution of the first half year's dividend at four and a half per cent, notwithstanding a variety of expenses to which they had been put, in the first organization of the bank. So that the profit upon bank stock, is generally estimated at about ten per cent per annum, which will, I should conceive, when known in Europe, be a strong inducement with many people, those particularly who have thoughts of coming to this country, to lodge their money here.

I would not, however, have you think the flourishing