negotiation, either directly or by means of her allies.

At

the period of the interviews of Mr. Pultney with Dr. Franklin at Paris, Congress had neither appointed a commissioner nor prepared instructions. We have not been able, in the secret journals of Congress, to discover the slightest intimation of a desire to abandon the ground of the instructions of August '79.* America at all times rejected with great

"VERSAILLES, Feb. 24, 1780.

"I have received, Sir, the letter which you have done me the honour to write me the 19th of this month. Your full powers, of which you have been pleased to send me a copy, are perfectly conformable to what M. Gerard has written me about them, and they leave us nothing to wish for as to the form or matter. I think there will be some unfitness in informing the public of the principal object of your mission. I mean the future pacification. It will, even, be announced in the Gazette of France, when it will mention your presentation to the king and royal family, and you will be at liberty to give your eventual character a greater publicity, by having it published in the Dutch papers. I could only wish, that you would be so kind as to communicate the article to me, before you transmit it. With regard to the full powers, which authorize you to negotiate a treaty of commerce with the Court of London, I think it will be prudent not to communicate them to any body whatever, and to take every necessary precaution, that the British may not have a premature knowledge of thein. You will no doubt easily feel the motives, which induces me to advise you to take this precaution, and it would be needless to expose them. "With regard to your instructions, Sir, I am certain they have for their certain and invariable basis the treaties subsisting between the King and the United States. M. Gerard has assured the King of it in the most positive manner, and his Majesty does more justice to the uprightness of Congress and to the stability of the sentiments, which they have hitherto manifested, than to have entertained or ever to entertain the least doubt on this subject. This way of thinking will convince you, Sir, that we have no need of seeing your instructions, to appreciate properly the principles and dispositions of Congress towards Great Britain.

"DE VERGENNES."

* In July '79 the French Minister urged to Congress the necessity or rather expediency of making peace without a formal acknowledgment of the independence. And June 9, 1781, Congress adopted a

emphasis even the project of a short truce.

This was con

sidered highly dangerous to the liberties of the country, though a favourite notion with many of her best friends in England. In the instructions of October '80, and of June '81, the same direction is inserted in relation to the acknowledgment. The commission, under which the preliminaries of the treaty were actually concluded, was issued by Congress in June '81.

It empowered "John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, John Jay, Henry Laurens, and Thomas Jefferson, or the majority of them, or such of them as may assemble, or in case of the death, absence, indisposition, or other impediment of the others, to any one of them, full power and authority, general and special commission to repair to such place, as may be fixed upon for opening the negotiations for peace, and there for us, and in our name, to confer, treat, agree and conclude with the ambassadors, commissioners and plenipotentiaries of the princes and states, whom it may concern, vested with equal powers, relating to the establishment of peace, and whatsoever shall be agreed and concluded for us, and in our name, to sign, and thereupon make a treaty or treaties, and to transact every thing that may be necessary for completing, securing and strengthening the great work of pacification, in as ample form, and with the same effect, as if we were personally present and acted therein."

Mr.

All the commissioners, except Mr. Jefferson, were present during some part of the discussions, being in Europe at the time the meeting was appointed.* Mr. Jefferson was in America, and did not leave it, as a report reached the government that the preliminaries were already signed. Oswald's commission in proper form, from which an extract was given on a preceding page, was not issued till the 21st of September. Some delay had taken place in consequence of objections made by one of the American commissioners

resolution, (with only three noes) authorizing the Commissioners to make a peace without a formal recognition; but, as we have said in the text, Congress never departed from the ground of treating as sovereign and independent states.

* Mr. Adams did not arrive at Paris till October 26, '82. Mr. Jay says, “I found him a very able and agreeable coadjutor.”

to the style, by which the United States were designated. The true and proper appellation of this country was omitted, the denomination of "colonies" being employed. But the American envoy refused to proceed in the business until a commission, giving to the United States their public and diplomatic name, was sent to Mr. Oswald. This appellation was the thirteen United States of America.

The French minister appeared to attach less importance to a formal recognition, in which opinion Dr. Franklin participated, than the American commissioner. M. de Vergennes considered the first commission of Mr. Oswald sufficient; he did not think it necessary America should insist on a formal acknowledgment. We have intimations of this disposition as early as July '79, in the communication of M. Gerard, the French minister to Congress. Indeed, the unpopularity of that gentleman in this country was supposed to be owing to the steps he took to induce Congress to renounce the idea of a formal recognition, together with the right of the fisheries, and the boundaries of the Mississippi.

*

Mr. Jay, who had arrived in Paris in June 1782, from Madrid, and who conducted the negotiation with uncommon spirit and ability, till he was joined by Mr. Adams, resisted immediately, and with remarkable firmness, all proposals to treat on the terms, recommended by M. de Vergennes, and, in some degree, countenanced by Dr. Franklin. This coun

try is much indebted to the resolution and independence, displayed by Mr. Jay on that topic, as well as on one of hardly less importance, that occurred on a subsequent occasion, though it is obvious, that gentleman, as well as Mr. Adams, assumed the great responsibility of deviating from the direct, manifest instructions of Congress.

66 August 10, 1782. I waited this morning on Vergennes, and a conference ensued between us on the subject of Mr. Oswald's commission. The Count said, it was such a one, as we might have

* Extract of a letter from Mr. Jay, June 25, '82.—“ Dr. Franklin is in perfect health, and his mind appears more vigorous than that of any man of his age I have ever known. He is certainly a valuable minister, and an agreeable companion."

expected it would have been, but that we must take care to insert proper articles in the treaty, to secure our independence and our limits against all future claims. I observed to the Count, it would be descending from the ground of independence, to treat under the name of colonies. He replied, names signify nothing. The king of Great Britain styling himself king of France, was no obstacle to the king of France's treating with him :--that an acknowledgment of independence, instead of preceding, must, in the natural course of things, be the effect of the treaty. The Count turned to Dr. Franklin, and asked him, what he thought of the matter; he said, he believed the commission would do. He next asked my opinion. I told him I did not like it. On returning, I could not forbear observing to the Doctor, it was evident the Count did not wish to see our independence acknowledged by Great Britain, till they had made all their use of it. It was easy for them to foresee difficulties in bringing Spain into a peace on moderate terms; and that, if we once found ourselves standing on our legs, our independence acknowledged, and our other terms ready to be granted, we might not think it our duty to continue the war for the attainment of Spanish objects; but as we were bound to continue the war till our independence was attained, it was the intent of France to postpone that event. The Doctor imputed the conduct of the Minister to his moderation; and, as this Court has hitherto treated us fairly, we should not easily suspect them."

A letter of the same tenor was also transmitted to Mr. Oswald himself, and which Mr. Jay succeeded in persuading Dr. Franklin to sign:

"It is with regret we find ourselves obliged by duty to our country to object to entering with you into negotiations for peace on the plan proposed. Our nation can treat with another nation only on terms of equality; and it cannot be expected, that we should be the first and only persons, who would admit doubts of their independence. The tenor of your commission affords matter for a variety of objections, which your good sense will save us the pain of enumerating. The journals of Congress present to you unequivocal and uniform evidence of the sentiments and resolutions of Congress on the subject, and their positive instructions speak the same language. The manner of removing these obstacles is

obvious, and, in our opinion, no less consistent with the dignity than with the interest of Great Britain. If the Parliament meant to enable the king to conclude a treaty with us on terms of independence, they necessarily meant to enable him to do it in a manner compatible with his dignity, and, consequently, that he should previously regard us in a point of view, that would render it proper for him to negotiate with us.

"As to referring an acknowledgment of our independence to the first article of a treaty, permit us to remark, that this implies, that we are not to be considered in that light, till after the conclusion of the treaty; and our acquiescing would be to admit the propriety of our being considered in another light during that interval."

As America was the ally of France, it was not consistent with the dignity of that nation, she should treat on other terms than those of independence. We may also remark, that as every idea of conquest on the part of England was absurd, nothing remained for that country, but to make friends of those she could not subdue, and independence constituting the action of the peace, it was a fair ground for negotiation to consider that topic, in conformity with the notion of Lord Shelburne, a condition of the peace, for which an equivalent should be conceded by the United States. It was obviously the intent of France to postpone the acknowledgment till the conclusion of a general peace, for America, by the terms of the treaty with that country, could not withdraw from the war, till the independence was assured. Mr. Jay prepared a detailed and learned memorial (now to be found in his correspondence) on the propriety of having Mr. Oswald's instructions altered, which he was in the act of sending to M. de Vergennes, when a despatch was received from the British government, authorizing their envoy to treat with the United States as sovereign and independent.*

There were two subjects, that created difficulty and great

* The Marquis de la Fayette laboured with zeal and assiduity to reconcile the differences of opinion between Mr. Jay and M. de Vergennes. Vid. Correspondence.