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not confirmed he might refign, produced a confirma- 1779tion. But the genuine patriotifm of the commander in chief, would have prevented his declining to ferve his country, while his exertions were acceptable, had the refolve been different. In that cafe, no cenfure could have fallen upon him, it would have been only declaring, that upon a close attention to the evidence contained in the trial, with a copy of which every member was furnifhed, congrefs thought the court martial mistaken.

Wednesday the 30th of December was obferved by order of congrefs as a thanksgiving day. At this very period, the affairs of the United States were in a most diftreffed, ruinous and deplorable condition. Idleness, diffipation and extravagance, feemed to have laid faft hold of the generality; and peculation, fpeculation, and an infatiable thirst for riches, to have gotten the better of every other confideration and almoft of every order of men. Party disputes and perfonal quarrels were the great bufinefs of the day, while the momentous concerns of the empire, a great and accumulated debt, ruined finances, depreciated money, and want of credit (which in the confequences is the want of every thing) were but fecondary confiderations, and poftponed by congrefs from time to time, as if their affairs wore the moft promifing afpect. The paper was finking in Philadelphia daily 50 per cent. and yet an affembly, a confort, a dinner or fupper (which coft two or three hundred pounds) did not only take men off from acting, but even from thinking of this bufinefs. Some of the moft difiaterefted and patriotic Americans felt more real diftrefs on account of this pearance of things, than they had done at any one time fince the commencement of the dispute.

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1779. Jan.

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Congrefs refolved, that as many counterfeits had appeared in circulation of various denominations of the emiffion of May 20, 1777, and April 11, 1778, the whole emiffions of these two dates, should be taken out of circulation. They were to be received within a limited term for continental debts and taxes, and into the continental loan offices, either to loan or be exchanged at the election of the owners. The counterfeiting of the bills, according to my information, originated with either James or John Rankin, formerly of York county in Pennfylvania. Having quitted their farms and joined the royalists, that government confifcated their eftates: one of them, to compenfate for his loffes and avenge himself upon the United States, entered upon the bufinefs of counterfeiting their paper currency, which was afterward practifed by others.

The convention troops were fent off in the second week of November to Virginia: the Germans marched from Cambridge, the British from Rutland, in which town they had been quartered for fome time back. But as the people could not banish from their minds, the notions they had imbibed of the cruelties the American prisoners had received, and as fome were afraid of being plundered, and others of being killed, the troops while upon their march met with great incivility from all ranks and degrees of men. The militia guard, which efcorted gen. Reidefel's baggage from Hartford to the York line, broke open fome of the boxes and plundered them of feveral dozen of wine, a great number of spermaceti candles, and five dozen packs of cards. The general was so much displeased with their conduct, that he wrote a letter to gen. M'Dougall, who returned a

very polite answer, and furnished a guard of continental troops to escort the baggage to Suffex court-house in the Jerseys.

1779.

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Mr. Gerard prefented memorials to congrefs, the fub- Feb. ject of which they determined to take into immediate confideration, at the fame time informing him, that if he wished to communicate any thing further, they would receive the fame from him in a private audience. He having a wish to make further communication, attended on the 15th, when congress was refolved into a committee of the whole. The committee reported, on the 23d, "That upon the confideration of all the matters referred, they are of opinion, that his Catholic majefty is difpofed to enter into an alliance with the United States of America; that he hath manifefted this difpofition in a decifive declaration lately made to the court of Great Britain; that in confequence of fuch declaration, the independence of thefe United States must be finally acknowledged by Great Britain, and immediately thereon a negotiation for peace will be fet on foot between the powers of France, Great Britain, and these United States, under the mediation of his Catholic majefty; or that Spain will take part in the war, and his Catholic majefty will unite his force with the moft Chriftian king and the United States :-That in order to be in readiness for a negotiation, the minifters of the United States ought to be inftructed by congrefs on the several following particulars, viz. 1. What to infift upon as the ultimatum of these states: 2. What to yield or require on terms of mutual exchange and compenfation." The committee reported their opinion upon these points,

1779- which were afterward the fubjects of confideration in

congrefs.

Mr. Gerard manifefted a defire, that the war might not be prolonged by too high and unreafonable demands; and that the United States would bring their ultimatum ás low as poffible. He ftrongly recommended moderation. The fate of war was uncertain; and he hinted that a decifive naval engagement in favor of the British, might give a great turn to their affairs. Mr. S. Adams was for infifting upon the ceffion of Canada and Nova Scotia; and fome were for adding Florida. Congress Mar. 19. agreed, 1ft, What fhould be the bounds of the Thir

teen United States in the ultimatum: 2d, That every port and place within the United States, and every island, harbour and road to them, or any of them belonging, fhould be abfolutely evacuated by the land and fea forces of his Britannic majefty, and yielded to the powers of the state to which they respectively belong. The fishery is a point which the New Englanders are much fet upon having fecured, and which will occafion repeated debates, and be long before it is fully and finally determined.

The Parifian minifter, Monfieur Vergennes, does not confine his policy to the establishment of American independence; it aims at fecuring to the French the Newfoundland fishery to the exclufion of the United States, and to the Spaniards the fole navigation of the Miffiffippi, and the lands on the eaftern fide of it, at the back of the prefent fettlements of the United States, and therefore called the Western lands. You must use this information as a clew to guide you through the labyrinth of Mr. Gerard's negotiation. Nine days after he had

his audience of congrefs, they received the account of 1779 the king of Naples having opened his ports to the flag of the United States of America.

The stroke aimed at gen. Mifflin by the congrefs refolve of June 11, 1778, (fee p. 12.) having answered its intention, all further proceedings ceafed; on which the general, on the 17th of Auguft, fent a letter to congress enclofing his commiffion, which for reafons therein fet forth, he begged leave to refign. That and two more letters of an earlier date were referred to a committee of three, who reported on the 23d of January 1779, that it did not appear to them that any proceedings had taken place fince the refolve of June the 11th, and that if the faid refolution was to be carried into execution, it fhould be done in the ufual manner, and that gen. Washington fhould have directions accordingly. Still the matter refted, fo that Mifflin on the 25th of February, informed congrefs that he had not heard what was their pleafure as to his refignation, and requested of them afresh to accept it, which they then refolved to do. Thus he has been impelled to lay afide his military character, which for the liberties of his country he had affumed, though of the quaker denomination: but he retains his patriotism, and will continue a volunteer in the fervice of the public. He refumed the quarter mafter general's department in September 1776 (then vacant through a refignation) by the defire and order of congrefs, and not for any private view or emoluments of his own, fo that he did not confider himself as refponfible for the calamitous effects of any delay, which depended not on himself or his affociates, but on congrefs.

Let us refume our account of military operations.

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