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you make a corresponding application to your own case. If you should think, that my strong desire for peace, although most laudable and virtuous in itself, should mislead me, and that my being, as you may suppose, misled, may be of any prejudice to the cause committed to your trust, I desire by no means to embarrass your free conduct by any considerations of private or personal regard to myself. Having said thus much, I will now add, that I am not unambitious of the office of a peacemaker; that I flatter myself the very page which I am now writing will bear full testimony, from both sides, of the impartiality of my conduct. And I will add once more, what I have often said and repeated to each side, viz. that no fallacy or deception, knowing, or suspecting it to be such, shall ever pass through my hands.

Believe me, I sympathize most cordially and sincerely with you in every anxiety of yours for peace. I hope things are tending, although not without rubs, yet in the main, to that end soon; as soon as the course of human life may be expected to operate on the great scale and course of national events, or rather in the creation and establishment of a new world. I am sometimes tempted to think myself in patient expectation the elder sage of the two; I say the elder, not the better. Yours, &c.

D. HARTLEY.

FROM JOHN ADAMS TO B. FRANKLIN.

Interview with Digges. Opposes the Plan of a Truce.- Affairs in Holland.

SIR,

The Hague, 26 March, 1782.

One day last week I received at Amsterdam a card from Mr. Digges, enclosing two letters to me from David Hartley. The card desired to see me upon business of importance; and the letters from Mr. Hartley contained an assurance, that to his knowledge the bearer came from the highest authority. I answered the card, that, in the present situation, of affairs here and elsewhere, it was impossible for me to see any one from England without witness; but, if he were willing to see me in the presence of Mr. Thaxter, my secretary, and that I should communicate whatever he should say to me to Dr. Franklin and the Count de Vergennes, I should wait for him at home at ten o'clock; but that I had rather he should go to Paris without seeing me, and communicate what he had to say to Dr. Franklin, whose situation enabled him to consult the court without any loss of time. At ten, however, he came, and told me a long story about consultations with Mr. Penn, Mr. Hartley, Lord Beauchamp, and at last Lord North, by whom he was finally sent, to inquire of me, if I, or any other, had authority to treat with Great Britain of a truce. I answered, that "I came to Europe with full powers to make peace; that those powers had been announced to the public upon my arrival, and continued in force until last summer, when Congress sent a new commission, containing the same powers to four persons, whom I named; that, if the King of England were

my father, and I the heir apparent to his throne, I could not advise him ever to think of a truce, because it would be but a real war under a simulated appearance of tranquillity, and would end in another open and bloody war, without doing any real good to any of the parties."

He said, that "the ministry would send some person of consequence over, perhaps General Conway, but they were apprehensive that he would be ill treated or exposed." I said, "that, if they resolved upon such a measure, I had rather they would send immediately to Dr. Franklin, because of his situation near the French court. But there was no doubt, if they sent any respectable personage, properly authorized, who should come to treat honorably, he would be treated with great respect; but that, if he came to me, I could give him no opinion upon any thing without consulting my colleagues, and should reserve a right of communicating every thing to them, and to our allies."

He then said, that "his mission was finished; that the fact to be ascertained was simply, that there was a commission in Europe to treat and conclude; but that there was not one person in Great Britain, who could affirm or prove, that there was such a commission, although it had been announced in the gazettes."

I desired him, and he promised me, not to mention Mr. Laurens to the ministry without his consent, (and without informing him, that it was impossible he should say any thing in the business, because he knew nothing of our instructions,) because, although it was possible that his being in such a commission might induce them to release him, yet it was also possible it might render them more difficult concerning his exchange.

The picture he gives of the situation of things in England is gloomy enough for them. The distresses of the people, and the distractions in administration and Parliament, are such as may produce any effect almost, that can be imagined.

The only use of all this, I think, is to strike the decisive strokes at New York and Charleston. There is no position so advantageous for negotiation, as when we have all an enemy's army prisoners. I must beg the favor of you, Sir, to send me, by one of the Count de Vergennes' couriers to the Duc de la Vauguyon, a copy in letters of your peace instructions. I have not been able to decipher one quarter part of mine. Some mistake has certainly been made.

Ten or eleven cities in Holland have declared themselves in favor of American independence; and it is expected that to-day or to-morrow, this province will take the decisive resolution of admitting me to my audience. Perhaps some of the other provinces may delay it for three or four weeks. But the Prince has declared, that he has no hopes of resisting the torrent, and, therefore, that he shall not attempt it.* The Duc de la Vauguyon has acted a very friendly and honorable part in this business, without, however, doing any ministerial act in it. With great respect, I have the honor to be, Sir, your most obedient and most humble servant, JOHN ADAMS.

* Mr. Adams was admitted to an audience of the Prince of Orange on the 22d of April, when he presented his letter of credence from Congress, and was recognised by the Prince as minister plenipotentiary from the United States. The next day the French ambassador made an entertainment, at which all the foreign ministers were present, and Mr. Adams was formally introduced to them. See Diplomatic Correspondence, Vol. VI. pp. 339, 342.

TO ROBERT R. LIVINGSTON.

Policy of the British Ministry to separate France and the United States.

SIR,

Passy, 30 March, 1782.

In mine of the 9th instant, I acknowledged the receipt of yours of January 7th, and I have not since received any of later date. The newspapers, which I send you by this conveyance, will acquaint you with what has, since my last, passed in Parliament. You will there see a copy of the bill, brought in by the attorney-general, for empowering the King to make peace with the colonies. They still seem to flatter themselves with the idea of dividing us; and, rather than name the Congress, they empower him generally to treat with any body or bodies of men, or any person or persons, &c. They are here likewise endeavouring to get us to treat separately from France, at the same time they are tempting France to treat separately from us, equally without the least chance of success. I have been drawn into a correspondence on this subject, which you shall have with my next. I send you a letter of Mr. Adams's, just received, which shows also that they are weary of the war, and would get out of it if they knew how. They had not then received the certain news of the loss of St. Christopher's, which will probably render them still more disposed to peace. I see that a bill is also passing through the House of Commons for the exchange of American prisoners, the purport of which I do not yet know.

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