Edward's certificate (which he will give very fully) should not be published, but reserved to repel these slanders, adding to it such others as the nature of them may call for. Mr. Dawson thinks he can easily settle the disagreeable business with M. The difficulty & delicacy will be with G. He is to open the matter to them to day and will write to you this evening. It is really a most afflicting consideration that it is impossible for a man to act in any office for the public without encountering a persecution which even his retirement will not withdraw him from. At this moment my name is running through all the city as detected in a criminal correspondence with the French directory, & fixed upon me by the documents from our envoys now before the two houses. The detection of this by the publication of the papers, should they be published, will not relieve all the effects of the lie, and should they not be published, they may keep it up as long and as successfully as they did and do that of my being involved in Blount's conspiracy. The question for the publication of the communications from our envoys is now under consideration in both houses. But if published, you cannot get them till another post. event of mr. Sprigg's resolutions is extremely doubtful. The first one now under consideration (to wit that it is not expedient to resort to war) will perhaps be carried or rejected by a majority of 1. or 2. only. Consequently it is impossible previously to say how it will be. All war-measures, debtors of our country will follow the fortunes of that resolution. Meas The Letters ures for internal defence will be agreed to. from France by a vessel which left Havre Feb. 5. express the greatest certainty that the French government, classing us in all her measures with Denmark & Sweden, has no more idea of declaring war against us than against them. Consequently it rests with ourselves. Present my best respects to mrs. Monroe & accept yourself friendly salutations & adieux. P. S. I will hereafter seal my letters with wax, & the same seal. Pay attention if you please to the state of the impression. TO JAMES MADISON. MAD. MSS. Apr. 6, 98. So much of the communications from our envoys has got abroad, & so partially, that there can now be no ground for reconsideration with the Senate. I may therefore, consistently with duty, do what every member of the body is doing. Still, I would rather you would use the communication with reserve till you see the whole papers. The first impressions from them are very disagreeable & confused. Reflection, however, & analysis resolves them into this. Mr. A's speech to Congress in May is deemed such a national affront, that no explanation on other topics can be entered on till that, as a preliminary, is wiped away by humiliating disavowals or acknolegments. This working hard with our envoys, & indeed seeming impracticable for want of that sort of authority, submission to a heavy amercement (upwards of a million sterl.) was, at an after meeting, suggested as an alternative, which might be admitted if proposed by us. These overtures had been through informal agents; and both the alternatives bringing the envoys to their ne plus, they resolve to have no more communication through inofficial characters, but to address a letter directly to the government, to bring forward their pretensions. This letter had not yet, however, been prepared. There were, interwoven with these overtures some base propositions on the part of Taleyrand, through one of his agents, to sell his interest & influence with the Directory towards smoothing difficulties with them, in consideration of a large sum (50.000 £ sterl); and the arguments to which his agent resorted to induce compliance with this demand, were very unworthy of a great nation, (could they be imputed to them,) and calculated to excite disgust & indignation in Americans generally, and alienation in the republicans particularly, whom they so far mistake, as to presume an attachment to France and hatred to the Federal party, & not the love of their country, to be their first passion. No difficulty was expressed towards an adjustment of all differences & misunderstandings, or even ultimately a paiment for spoliations, if the insult from our Executive should be first wiped away. Observe, that I state all this from only a single hearing of the papers, & therefore it may not be rigorously correct. The little slanderous imputation before mentioned, has been the bait which hurried the opposite party into this publication. The first impressions with the people will be disagree able, but the last & permanent one will be, that the speech in May is now the only obstacle to accommodation, and the real cause of war, if war takes place. And how much will be added to this by the speech of November, is yet to be learnt. It is evident, however, on reflection, that these papers do not offer one motive the more for our going to war. Yet such is their effect on the minds of wavering characters, that I fear, that to wipe off the imputation of being French partisans, they will go over to the war measures so furiously pushed by the other party. It seems indeed, as if they were afraid they should not be able to get into war till Great Britain will be blown up, and the prudence of our countrymen from that circumstance, have influence enough to prevent it. The most artful misrepresentations of the contents of these papers were published yesterday, & produced such a shock on the republican mind, as has never been seen since our independence. We are to dread the effects of this dismay till their fuller information. Adieu. P. M. Evening papers have come out since writing the above. I therefore inclose them. Be so good as to return Brown's by post, as I keep his set here. The representatives are still unfaithful. TO JAMES MADISON. MAD. MSS. PHILADELPHIA, Apr. 12, 98. I wrote you two letters on the 5th inst; since which I have recd yours of the 2d. I send you, in a separate package, the instructions to our envoys & their communications. You will find that my representation of their contents from memory, was substantially just. The public mind appears still in a state of astonishment. There never was a moment in which the aid of an able pen was so important to place things in their just attitude. On this depend the inchoate movement in the Eastern mind, and the fate of the elections in that quarter, now beginning & to continue through the summer. I would not propose to you such a task on any ordinary occasion. But be assured that a well-digested analysis of these papers would now decide the future turn of things, which are at this moment on the creen. The merchants here are meeting under the auspices of Fitzsimmons, to address the President & approve his propositions. Nothing will be spared on that side. Sprigg's first resolution against the expediency of war, proper at the time it was moved, is now postponed as improper, because to declare that, after we have understood it has been proposed to us to buy peace, would imply an acquiescence under that proposition. All, therefore, which the advocates of peace can now attempt, is to prevent war measures externally, consenting to every rational measure of internal defence & preparation. Great expences will be incurred; & it will be left to those whose measures render them necessary, to provide to meet them. They already talk of stopping all paiments of interest, & of a land tax. These will probably not be opposed. The only question will be, how to modify the land tax. On this there may be great diversity |