The Diplomatic Correspondence of the American Revolution Volume IV Part 20

The Apostolical Nuncio has the honor to send Mr Franklin the enclosed note, which he requests he will be pleased to forward to the Congress of the United States of North America, and support it with his credit.

July 28th, 1783.

NOTE.

Before the revolution, which has just been completed in North America, the Catholics and missionaries of those provinces depended, as to their spiritual concerns, on the Apostolical Vicar, resident in London. It is well known that this arrangement can no longer exist; but as it is essential that the Catholic subjects of the United States should have an ecclesiastic to govern them in their religious concerns, the congregation _de Propaganda Fide_ existing at Rome for the establishment and conservation of missions, has come to the determination of proposing to Congress to establish, in some city of the United States of North America, one of their Catholic subjects, with the powers of Apostolical Vicar, and in the character of Bishop, or simply in quality of Apostolical Prefect.

The establishment of an Apostolical Vicar Bishop appears the most eligible, the more so as the Catholic subjects of the United States would find themselves in a situation to receive confirmation and orders in their own country, without being obliged to go for that purpose to the country of a foreign power. And as it might sometimes happen, that among the subjects of the United States, there might be no person in a situation to be charged with the spiritual government, either as Bishop or Apostolical Prefect, it would be necessary, in such circ.u.mstances, that Congress should consent to choose him from among the subjects of a foreign nation the most friendly with the United States.

TO COUNT DE VERGENNES.

Pa.s.sy, August 16th, 1783.

Sir,

I have the honor to inform your Excellency, that the English Ministry do not agree to any of the propositions that have been made, either by us or by their Minister here; and they have sent over a plan for the definitive treaty, which consists merely of the preliminaries formerly signed, with a short introductory paragraph, and another at the conclusion, confirming and establishing the said preliminary articles. My colleagues seem inclined to sign this with Mr Hartley, and so to finish the affair.

I am, with respect, Sir, your Excellency's, &c.

B. FRANKLIN.

M. DE RAYNEVAL TO B. FRANKLIN.

Translation.

Versailles, August 29th, 1783.

Sir,

I have informed the Count de Vergennes of the difficulty, which Mr Hartley has made to signing at Versailles, and this Minister has directed me to say, that nothing ought to prevent your signing at Paris on Wednesday next, the day proposed for the signature of the other treaties; but I request you to fix the hour with Mr Hartley at nine o'clock in the morning, and to send here an express immediately after your signature is completed.

M. de Vergennes is desirous of being informed of the completion of your labors at the same time with his own. You receive for Wednesday a note of invitation, as well as for your colleagues and Mr Hartley; I presume that the latter will make no difficulty.

I have the honor to be, Sir, with perfect consideration, your most obedient humble servant,

DE RAYNEVAL.

TO THE PRESIDENT OF CONGRESS.

Pa.s.sy, August 31st, 1783.

Sir,

After a continued course of treating for nine months, the English Ministry have at length come to a resolution to lay aside, for the present, all the new propositions, that have been made and agreed to, their own as well as ours; and they offer to sign again as a Definitive Treaty, the articles of November the 30th, 1782, the ratifications of which have already been exchanged. We have agreed to this, and on Wednesday next, the third of September, it will be signed, with all the definitive treaties, establishing a general peace, which may G.o.d long continue.

I am, with great respect, &c.

B. FRANKLIN.

TO DAVID HARTLEY.

Pa.s.sy, September 6th, 1783.

My Dear Friend,

Enclosed is my letter to Mr Fox. I beg you would a.s.sure him, that my expressions of esteem for him are not mere professions. I really think him a _great_ man, and I would not think so if I did not believe he was at bottom, and would prove himself a _good_ one. Guard him against mistaken notions of the American people. You have deceived yourselves too long with vain expectations of reaping advantage from our little discontents. We are more thoroughly an enlightened people, with respect to our political interests, than perhaps any other under Heaven. Every man among us reads, and is so easy in his circ.u.mstances as to have leisure for conversations of improvement, and for acquiring information. Our domestic misunderstandings, when we have them, are of small extent, though monstrously magnified by your microscopic newspapers. He who judges from them, that we are on the point of falling into anarchy, or returning to the obedience of Britain, is like one who being shown some spots in the sun should fancy, that the whole disk would soon be overspread with them, and that there would be an end of daylight. The great body of intelligence among our people, surrounds and overpowers our petty dissensions, as the sun's great ma.s.s of fire diminishes and destroys his spots. Do not, therefore, any longer delay the evacuation of New York, in the vain hope of a new revolution in your favor, if such a hope has indeed had any effect in occasioning the delay. It is now nine months since the evacuations were promised. You expect with reason, that the people of New York should do your merchants justice in the payment of their old debts; consider the injustice you do them in keeping them so long out of their habitations, and out of their business, by which they might have been enabled to make payment. There is no truth more clear to me than this, that the great interests of our two countries is a thorough reconciliation. Restraints on the freedom of commerce and intercourse between us, can afford no advantage equivalent to the mischief they will do, by keeping up ill humor and promoting a total alienation. Let you and me, my dear friend, do our best towards advancing and securing that reconciliation. We can do nothing, that will in a dying hour afford us more solid satisfaction.

I wish you a prosperous journey, and a happy sight of your friends.

Present my best respects to your good brother and sister, and believe me ever, with sincere and great esteem, yours affectionately,

B. FRANKLIN.

TO JOHN JAY.

Pa.s.sy, September 10th, 1783.

Sir,

I have received a letter from a very respectable person in America, containing the following words, viz.

"It is confidently reported, propagated, and believed by some among us, that the Court of France was at the bottom against our obtaining the fishery and territory in that great extent, in which both are secured to us by the treaty; that our Minister at that Court favored, or did not oppose this design against us, and that it was entirely owing to the firmness, sagacity, and disinterestedness of Mr Adams, with whom Mr Jay united, that we have obtained these important advantages."

It is not my purpose to dispute any share of the honor of that treaty, which the friends of my colleagues may be disposed to give them, but having now spent fifty years of my life in public offices and trusts, and having still one ambition left, that of carrying the character of fidelity at least to the grave with me, I cannot allow that I was behind any of them in zeal and faithfulness. I therefore think, that I ought not to suffer an accusation, which falls little short of treason to my country, to pa.s.s without notice, when the means of effectual vindication are at hand. You, Sir, were a witness of my conduct in that affair. To you and my other colleagues I appeal, by sending to each a similar letter with this, and I have no doubt of your readiness to do a brother Commissioner justice, by certificates, that will entirely destroy the effect of that accusation.

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

B. FRANKLIN.

JOHN JAY TO B. FRANKLIN.

Pa.s.sy, September 11th, 1783.

Sir,

I have been favored with your letter of yesterday, and will answer it explicitly. I have no reason whatever to believe, that you were averse to our obtaining the full extent of boundary and fishery secured to us by the treaty. Your conduct respecting them throughout the negotiation indicated a strong, a steady attachment to both those objects, and in my opinion promoted the attainment of them.