I feel how flattering it is to me, Sir, to be the organ of the public sense on this occasion, and to be justified, by that office, in adding to theirs, the homage of those sentiments of respect and esteem, with which I have the honour to be, Your Excellency's Most obedient and most humble servant, TO WILLIAM SHORT. New York, April 30, 1790. DEAR SIR, My last letter to you was of the 6th instant, acknowledging the receipt of your favours of the 2d and 6th of January. Since that, Mr. Jay has put into my hands yours of the 12th of January, and I have received your note of February the 10th, accompanying some newspapers. Mine of the 6th covered the President's letter to the King for my recal, and my letters of leave for myself and of credence to you, for the Count de Montmorin, with copies of them for your information. Duplicates of all these accompany the present; and an original commission for you as chargé des affaires, signed by the President. At the date of my former letters, I had not had time to examine with minuteness the proper form of credentials under our new constitution: I governed myself, therefore, by foreign precedents, according to which a chargé des affaires is furnished with only a letter of credence from one Minister of Foreign Affairs to the other. Further researches have shewn me, that under our new constitution, all commissions (or papers amounting to that) must be signed by the President. You will judge whether any explanation on this subject to M. de Montmorin be necessary. I inclose you also the copy of a letter written to the Marquis de la Luzerne, to be communicated to the Count de Montmorin, and by him to the King, if he thinks proper. It has become necessary to determine on a present proper to be given to diplomatic characters on their taking leave of us; and it is concluded that a medal and chain of gold will be the most convenient. I have, therefore, to ask the favour of you to order the dies to be engraved with all the despatch practicable. The medal must be of thirty lines diameter, with a loop on the edge to receive the chain. On one side, must be the arms of the United States, of which I send you a written description, and several impressions in wax to render that more intelligible; round them, as a legend, must be The United States of America.' The device of the other side we do not decide on. One suggestion has been, a Columbia (a fine female figure) delivering the emblems of peace and commerce to a Mercury, with a legend, Peace and Commerce' circumscribed, and the date of our republic, to wit, IV July MDCCLXXVI, subscribed as an exergum: but having little confidence in our own ideas in an art not familiar here, they are only suggested to you, to be altered, or altogether postponed, to such better device as you may approve, on consulting with those who are in the habit and study of medals. Duvivier and Dupré seem to be the best workmen ; perhaps the last is the best of the two. The public papers which accompany this, will give you fully the news of this quarter. I am, with great and sincere esteem, Dear Sir, Your most obedient and most humble servant, TH. JEFFERSON. TO MR. DUMAS. New York, June 23, 1790. DEAR SIR, I arrived at this place the latter end of March, and undertook the office to which the President had been pleased to appoint me, of Secretary of State, which comprehends that of Foreign Affairs. Before I had got through the most pressing matters which had been accumulating, a long illness came upon me, and put it out of my power for many weeks to acknowledge the receipt of your letters. We are much pleased to learn the credit of our paper at Amsterdam. We consider it as of the first importance, to possess the first credit there, and to use it little. Our distance from the wars of Europe, and our disposition to take no part in them, will, we hope, enable us to keep clear of the debts which they occasion to other powers. It will be well for yourself and our bankers, to keep in mind always, that a great distinction is made here between our foreign and domestic paper. As to the foreign, Congress is considered as the representative of one party only, and I think I can say with truth, that there is not one single individual in the United States, either in or out of office, who supposes they can ever do any thing which might impair their foreign contracts. But with respect to domestic paper, it is thought that Congress, being the representative of both parties, may shape their contracts so as to render them practicable, only seeing that substantial justice be done. This distinction will explain to you their proceedings on the subject of their debts. The funding their foreign debts, according to express contract, passed without a debate, and without a dissenting voice. The modelling and funding the domestic debt, occasions great debates and great difficulty. The bill of ways and means was lately thrown out, because an excise was interwoven into its texture; and another ordered to be brought in, which will be clear of that. The assumption of the debts contracted by the States to individuals, for services rendered the Union, is a measure which divides Congress greatly. Some think that the States could much more conveniently levy taxes themselves to pay off these, and thus save Congress from the odium of imposing too heavy burthens in their name. This appears to have been the sentiment of the majority hitherto. But it is possible that modifications may be proposed, which may bring the measure yet into an acceptable form. We shall receive with gratitude the copy of Rymer's Federa, which you are so good as to propose for the use of our offices here. I have the honour to be, with great esteem, Dear Sir, Your most obedient and most humble servant, TO MR. DUMAS. New York, July 13, 1790. SIR, I wrote you last on the 23d of June, since which I have received yours of March the 24th to the 30th. Congress are still engaged in their funding bills. The foreign debts did not admit of any difference of opinion. They were settled by a single and unanimous vote: but the domestic debt requiring modifications and settlements, these produce great difference of opinion, and consequently retard the passage of the funding bill. The States had individually con tracted considerable debts for their particular defence, in addition to what was done by Congress. Some of the States have so exerted themselves since the war, as to have paid off near the half of their individual debts. Others have done nothing. The State creditors urge that these debts were as much for general purposes as those contracted by Congress, and insist that Congress shall assume and pay such of them as have not been yet paid by their own States. The States who have exerted themselves most, find that, notwithstanding the great payments they have made, they shall by this assumption still have nearly as much to pay as if they had never paid any thing. They are therefore opposed to it. I am in hopes a compromise will be effected by a proportional assumption, which may reach a great part of the debts, and leave still a part of them to be paid by those States who have paid few or none of their creditors. This being once settled, Congress will probably adjourn, and meet again in December, at Philadelphia. The appearance of war between our two neighbours, Spain and England, would render a longer adjournment inexpedient. I have the honour to be, with great esteem, Dear Sir, Your most obedient and most humble servant, DEAR SIR, TO WILLIAM SHORT. New York, July 26, 1790. My public letters to you have been of the 28th of March, the 6th and 30th of April. Yours, which remain to be acknowledged, are of March the 9th, 17th, 29th, April the 4th, 12th, 23rd, and May the 1st; being from No. 21 to 28, inclusive, except No. 23, which had come to hand before. I will state to you the dates of all your letters received by me, with the times they have been received, and length of their passage. You will perceive that they average eleven weeks and a half; that the quickest are of nine weeks, and the longest are of near eighteen weeks coming. Our information through the English papers is of about five or six weeks, and we generally remain as long afterwards in anxious suspense till the receipt of your letters may enable us to decide what articles of those papers have been true. As these come principally by the English packet, I will take the liberty of asking you to write always by that packet, giving a full detail of such events as may be communicated through that channel, and indeed most may. If your letters leave Paris nine or ten days before the sailing of the packet, we shall be able to decide, on the moment, on the facts, true or false, with which she comes charged. For communications of a secret nature, you will avail yourself of other conveyances, and you will be enabled to judge which are best by the preceding statement. News from Europe is very interesting at this moment, when it is so doubtful whether. a war will take place between our two neighbours. Congress have passed an act for establishing the seat of government at Georgetown, from the year 1800, and in the mean time, to remove to Philadelphia. It is to that place, therefore, that your future letters had better be addressed. They have still before them the bill for funding the public debts. That has been hitherto delayed by a question whether the debts contracted by the particular States for general purposes should, at once, be assumed by the General Government. A development of circumstances, and more mature consideration, seem to have produced some change of opinion on the subject. When it was first proposed, a majority was against it. There is reason to believe, by the complexion of some later votes, that the majority will now be for assuming these debts to a fixed amount. Twenty-one millions of dollars are proposed. As soon as this point is settled, the funding bill will pass, and Congress will adjourn. That adjournment will probably be between the 6th and 13th of August. They expect it sooner. I shall then be enabled to inform you ultimately on the subject of the French debt, the negociations for the payment of which will be referred to the executive, and will not be retarded by them an unnecessary moment. A bill has passed, authorising the President to raise the salary of a chargé des affaires to four thousand five hundred dollars, from the first day of July last. I am authorised by him to inform you that yours will accordingly be at that rate, and that you will be allowed for gazettes, translating, or printing papers, where that shall be necessary, postage, couriers, and necessary aids to poor American sailors, in addition to the salary, and no charge of any other description, except where you may be directed to incur it expressly. I have thought it would be most agreeable to you to give you precise information, that you may be in no doubt in what manner tá |