The Diplomatic Correspondence of the American Revolution Volume VIII Part 42

We still remain in the same uncertainty about the negotiations of the other belligerent powers, yet they are believed to be in a favorable state, and it is expected we shall soon receive the news of the preliminaries being signed by them all. If so, I should think the approaching war with the Turks will not be productive of a general war in Europe. For it seems repugnant to the interests of some of the present belligerent powers, to close this war with an almost certain prospect before them of being speedily engaged in another.

In a letter, received by the last post from Mr Adams, he informs me that Dr Franklin and himself had agreed to advance the money necessary to the conclusion of a commercial treaty with her Imperial Majesty; so that I have now only to wait the issue of the present negotiations for peace. Whenever that moment arrives, I shall endeavor to make all convenient despatch in the business of the treaty, to the end, that if any of our vessels should arrive here early in the spring, which seems probable, they may reap the benefit of it. I shall immediately after return to America, as I have proposed to do in my letter of the 23d of September last. I do not foresee any inconvenience that will happen to our interests in consequence of our being without a Minister at this Court for some time. I hope, therefore, that Congress will not take it amiss that I should return without obtaining the express permission for it. Besides the reasons given in my letter of the 27th ultimo, which appear to me to render such a step necessary, my health has suffered so much since my coming into this climate, that every consideration presses me to quit it as soon as possible. I have not been honored with any letter from you since No. 6.

I am, with the greatest respect, &c.

FRANCIS DANA.

TO ROBERT R. LIVINGSTON.

St Petersburg, February 10th, 1783.

Sir,

In the afternoon of the 6th instant, we received the most agreeable news, that the preliminary treaty of peace was signed at Paris, on the 20th ultimo, between France, Spain, and Great Britain. The articles are still unknown here, as the above fact simply was communicated by Count de Vergennes to the foreign Ministers at Versailles, and the Russian Minister immediately despatched an account of it to the Vice Chancellor, Count Ostermann. No courier has yet arrived for either of the foreign Ministers here.

You will be pleased to accept my most hearty congratulations upon this great event, especially as the peace we have obtained is both honorable and glorious. America, I believe, stands high in the esteem of all the world; to which not only her successes in this great revolution, but the proofs she has given in the course of it, of her sacred regard to her plighted faith, have contributed. Our revolution is universally spoken of as the most important which the world has ever seen. Its influence penetrates the innermost recesses of every Cabinet in Europe, they will and they must give way to it.

It is yet difficult to say what will be the effect of the present peace, upon the approaching war with the Turks. Though it will not probably prevent it, yet it may moderate its views towards that quarter, and thus save the continent of Europe from the mischief of a general conflagration. I shall communicate my mission to the Vice Chancellor, as soon as some necessary arrangements can be made, and shall endeavor to bring on the business of the commercial treaty without loss of time, as there is now little doubt but some of our vessels may arrive here early in the spring. I have it in view to procure some special favors, for a direct commerce between the West Indies and this empire, to be carried on by our vessels, which will turn to the advantage of both parties. But to render it more certain, it may be necessary to procure a right of trading freely with the British West Indies, and also exporting from thence in our vessels, to any part of the world, the productions of their Islands, paying the same duties as their native subjects pay upon the same articles, when they export them for Great Britain or elsewhere. I think we may obtain this privilege in our commercial treaty with Great Britain, if we insist upon it. Our treaties with France and Holland, appear to me to be exceedingly defective respecting a commerce with their American territories. If Great Britain should refuse us that privilege, we might perhaps arrive at the same end, by reserving to ourselves a right to impose what extra duties we judge proper, either upon our productions exported to any part of her dominions, or upon her productions imported into America, if any higher duties should be imposed upon her West India productions when exported by us, than when by her native subjects, notwithstanding any general clause giving her the advantages of the most favored nations. The object appears to me to be of importance to our interests, and that we can obtain it in the manner I first proposed, (which would be the most beneficial, and least liable to create mutual disgusts) if we should think proper to make it the _sine qua non_ of a commercial treaty with Great Britain.

We should reap advantages from it, not only in our commerce with this empire, but with every other in Europe, not having such establishments in America.

Now I am upon this subject of commerce, I will take the liberty to acquaint you, that Portugal intends to procure the right of establishing factories in the United States, under the protection of the Oporto company, in order to secure special advantages for the sale of her wines. This plan will not be particularly mentioned, but the end will be obtained under the general right of establishing factories in America without naming the Oporto company. You may rely upon this information, and will make your advantage of it. It will occur to you, that we may demand as a compensation, the right to export not only from Portugal but from the wine Islands, that article in our vessels, paying the same duties as the native subjects, or the Oporto Company pay upon it. Without something of this sort the Portuguese factories might secure to themselves almost the exclusive supply of their wines to America. They have a factory here, under the protection of the Oporto Company. You will not take it amiss, that I suggest these subjects to your consideration. If any of them can be turned to the benefit of our country, my end in troubling you with them will be answered.

I have the honor to be, &c.

FRANCIS DANA.

TO ROBERT R. LIVINGSTON.

St Petersburg, February 25th, 1783.

Sir,

In the last letter I did myself the honor to write you, I acquainted you I should communicate my mission to the Vice Chancellor as soon as some necessary arrangements could be made. Being entirely prepared to do so, I thought it but decent to communicate my intention to the French Minister, rather in the form of consulting him upon the expediency of the measure. He at first thought it would be advisable to wait till the signing of the definitive treaty of peace, adding, that though he could not take upon himself to say, that I should not be received in the present moment, yet that it would not surprise him if my admission should be postponed to that time, intimating that the present unsettled state of affairs, (of which I have spoken in my late letters) might have some influence upon the determination of this Court in a matter of that sort. He concluded with saying, that it would not be amiss to wait till the British Minister here should have communicated in form the signature of the preliminaries of peace to this Court. I shall conform entirely to his advice; for the time is now most certainly indifferent as to our interests, which are most solidly established by the peace.

I cannot add anything to what I have before said respecting the Turkish war, which since the conclusion of the late one, is the grand object which engages the general attention. According to the course of business here, I expect to be detained two or three months in negotiating our commercial treaty. I hope, however, the resolution of Congress of the 14th of September last, respecting their moneys in Europe (a copy of which Mr Adams sent me by the last post) will not be any impediment to the conclusion of it. The money Dr Franklin and Mr Adams have engaged upon my application to them to advance for that purpose, being indispensably necessary, I presume they will not withdraw the credit they have given me, and that Congress will approve of their conduct, as well as of mine in this business. The resolution is doubtless a wise one, but there are circ.u.mstances for which Congress cannot provide in season, and this seems to be of that nature. If those gentlemen should not, therefore, withdraw their credit, I shall venture to apply the money when it shall become necessary, to the use for which they have granted it. It would be a great satisfaction to me, if I could receive in season an answer to my letter of the 25th of last August, in which I acquainted you I should stand in need of the money.

I shall not fail to give you the earliest intelligence of my reception in this Court, which I hope will not be long delayed, as it is my earnest wish to complete our treaty of commerce, and to return to America in the course of the next summer.

I have the honor to be, &c.

FRANCIS DANA.

_Mr Dana's Communication of his Mission to Count Ostermann._

St Petersburg, March 7th, 1783.

Sir,

I have the honor to inform your Excellency, that the United States of America, a.s.sembled in Congress, having thought fit to appoint a Minister to reside near her Majesty, the Empress of all the Russias, have furnished me with their letter of credence for that purpose.

Convinced of the justice of their cause, and confiding entirely in that exact neutrality, which her Imperial Majesty had been pleased to declare, with a dignity becoming her character, she would make the invariable rule of her conduct, unless compelled to depart from it in maintenance of the rights of her Imperial Crown and of her subjects, the Congress, my Sovereign, have expressly commanded me to delay the communication of my mission till the course of events should prepare the way for it, without the least infraction upon the system adopted by her Imperial Majesty, by which she has acquired so much glory to herself. In the sentiment that that moment has now arrived, I take the liberty to request the honor of an audience of your Excellency, to the end, that I might present to you a copy of my letter of credence to her Imperial Majesty.

I have the honor to be, &c.

FRANCIS DANA.

TO ROBERT R. LIVINGSTON.

St Petersburg, March 7th, 1783.

Sir,

I have time only, by the post of this day, to acknowledge the receipt of yours of the 7th of November last, and of a letter of the same date from Mr S. R. Morris, one of your Secretaries, enclosing a bill for 666,13 livres tournois, and also to inform you, that I have this day communicated my mission to the Vice Chancellor, Count Ostermann, by a letter of which the enclosed is a translation, the original being in French. I have taken this step without being advised to it by my correspondent, the Marquis de Verac, but not before I had received a.s.surances directly from the private Cabinet of her Imperial Majesty, that the way was perfectly clear. You will readily conjecture the reason why I have chosen to mention my last instructions so particularly in this communication, and placed them in so strong a light. There is no question in my mind of the propriety of doing this, and I hope it will not be thought amiss by Congress, whose honor and dignity I shall ever keep in view.

I am, with much esteem and respect, &c.

FRANCIS DANA.

TO ROBERT R. LIVINGSTON.

St Petersburg, March 12th, 1783.

Sir,

In my letter of the 7th of March, I acquainted you that I had that day communicated my mission to the Vice Chancellor, in consequence of a.s.surances received from the Private Cabinet of her Imperial Majesty, that the way was prepared for it. I had an interview on the 5th inst.

with one of the members of the Cabinet, who informed me, after some general conversation respecting America, that I might communicate my mission to the Vice Chancellor at any time, that possibly I might not receive an immediate answer to my letter, but that I need give myself no uneasiness on that account, as the delay would not be occasioned by anything which concerned the United States or me personally. I told him, that I could form my opinion only upon general principles; that judging upon them, I did not perceive any obstacle to her Majesty's receiving in this moment a Minister from the United States; yet it was possible her Majesty might have some particular matters in view, which might form an impediment, of which I could have no knowledge.

I threw in this last sentiment to discover if there were any difficulties of the sort, which the French Minister had intimated to me might arise from the unsettled state of affairs alluded to in my letter of the 25th of February, when I consulted him as there mentioned. He replied, there were no such matters, nor would there be any difficulty, especially since the signing of the preliminaries of peace had been communicated to her Majesty, and that I might make myself perfectly easy about it, and send my letter to the Vice Chancellor as soon as I pleased. I have given you the substance of our conversation, omitting only the complimentary parts of it on one side and on the other. I have this day received a verbal message from the Vice Chancellor, acknowledging the receipt of my letter, and informing me, that as this was the first week in the great Lent, he had not yet had an opportunity to lay it before her Majesty. This, Sir, is the present state of things as far as they concern us immediately.

I have the honor to be, &c.

FRANCIS DANA.

TO ROBERT R. LIVINGSTON.

St Petersburg, March 21st, 1783.