The Duke himself is as unprincipled as his followers; sunk into debaucheries of the lowest kind, and incapable of quitting them for business; not a fool, yet not head enough to conduct any thing. In fact, I suppose him used merely as a tool, because of his immense wealth, and that he acquired a certain degree of popularity by his first opposition to the Government, then credited to him as upon virtuous motives. He is certainly borrowing money on a large scale. He is in understanding with the Court of London, where he had been long on habits of intimacy. The Ministry here are apprehensive that that Ministry will support his designs by war. I have no idea of this, but no doubt, at the same time, that they will furnish him money liberally to aliment a civil war, and prevent the regeneration of this country.

It was suggested to me some days ago that the Court of Versailles were treating with that of London, for a surrender of their West India possessions, in consideration of a great sum of money to relieve their present distress. Every principle of common sense was in opposition to this fact, yet it was so affirmed as to merit inquiry. I became satisfied that the Government had never such an idea, but. that the story was not without foundation altogether; that something like this was in contemplation between the faction of Orleans and the Court of London, as a means of obtaining money from that Court. In a conversation with the Count de Montmorin, two days ago, he told me their colonies were speaking a language which gave them uneasiness, and for which there was no foundation. I asked. him if he knew anything of what I had just mentioned. He appeared unapprized of it, but to see at once that it would be a probable speculation between the two parties circumstanced and principled as those two are. I apologized to him for the inquiries I had made in this business, by observing that it would be much against our interest, that any one Power should monopolize all the West India Islands. "Pardi assurément," was his answer.

The emancipation of their islands is an idea prevailing in the minds of several members of the National Assembly, particularly those most enlightened and most liberal in their views. Such a step by this country would lead to other emancipations or revolutions in the same quarter.

I enclose you some papers, received from Mr. Carmichael, relative to the capture of one of our vessels by a Morocco cruiser, and

restitution by the Emperor. I shall immediately write to M. Chiappe to express a proper sense of the Emperor's friendly dispositions to us. I forward, also, the public papers to the present date, and have the honor to be, &c.,

TH: JEFFERSON.

FROM THOMAS JEFFERSON TO JOHN JAY.

Paris, September 19, 1789.

Sir,

I had the honor of addressing you on the 30th of the last month. Since that, I have taken the liberty of consigning to you a box of officers' muskets, containing half a dozen, made by the person and on the plan which I mentioned to you in a letter which I cannot turn to at this moment; but I think it was of the year 1785. A more particular account of them you will find in the enclosed copy of a letter which I have written to General Knox. The box is marked T. J., No. 36-is gone to Havre, and will be forwarded to you by the first vessel bound to New York, by Mr. Nathaniel Cutting, an American gentleman, establishing himself there.

Recalling to your mind the account I gave you of the number and size of ships fitted out by the English last year for the northern whale fishery, and comparing with it what they have fitted out this year for the same fishery, the comparison will stand thus:

By which you will perceive that they have lost a third of that fishery in one year, which I think almost entirely-if not quite— ascribable to the shutting the French ports against their oil. I have no account of their southern fishery of the present year.

As soon as I was informed that our bankers had the money ready for the redemption of our captives, I went to the General of the Order of the Holy Trinity, who retained all his dispositions to aid us in that business. Having a very confidential agent at Marseilles,

better acquainted than himself with the details, he wrote to him for his opinion and information on the subject. I enclose you a copy of his answer, the original of which was communicated to me. I thereupon have authorized the General to go as far as three thousand livres a head for our captives; and for this purpose to adopt the plan proposed of sending one of his own religion at our expense, (which will be small,) or any other plan he thinks best. The honesty and goodness of his character places us in safety in his hands. To leave him without any hesitation in engaging himself for such a sum of money, it was necessary to deposit it in a banker's hands there. M. Grand's were agreeable to him, and I have therefore desired our banker at Amsterdam to remit it here. I do not apprehend in the progress of the present revolution anything like a general bankruptcy, which should pervade the whole class of bankers. Were such an event to appear imminent, the excessive caution of the house of Grand & Company establishes it in the general opinion as the last that would give way, and consequently would give time to withdraw this money from their hands. Mr. Short will attend to this, and will withdraw the money on the first well-founded appearance of danger. He has asked me what he shall do with it? Because it is evident, that when Grant cannot be trusted, no other individual at Paris can, and a general bankruptcy can only be the effect of such disorders as would render every private house an insecure deposit. I have not hesitated to say to him, in such an event, "Pay it to the Government." In this case, it becomes only a change of destination, and no loss at all. But this has passed between us for greater caution only, and on the worst case supposable; for though a suspension of payment by Government might affect the bankers a little, I doubt if any of them have embarked so much in the hands of Government as to endanger failure, and especially as they have had such long warning.

You will have known that the ordinance passed by M. de Chillon, in St. Domingo, for opening ports to our importations in another part of the island, was protested against by Marbois. He had always led the Count de la Luzerne by the nose while Governor of that island. Marbois's representations, and Luzerne's prepossessions against our trade with their colonies, occasioned him, as Minister of that department, not only to reverse the ordinance, but to recall Chillon, and send out a successor. Chillon has arrived here, and

having rendered himself very popular in the islands, their deputies in the National Assembly have brought the question before them. The Assembly has done nothing more as yet than to appoint a committee of inquiry. So much of Chillon's ordinance as admitted the importation of our provisions is continued for a time. M. de Marbois, too, is recalled; I know not why or how. M. de la Luzerne's conduct will probably come under view only incidentally to the general question urged by the colony deputies, whether they shall not be free in future to procure provisions where they can procure them cheapest. But the deputies are disposed to treat M. de la Luzerne roughly. This, with the disgrace of his brother, the Bishop de Langres, turned out of the Presidentship of the National Assembly for partiality in office to the aristocratic principles, and the disfavor of the Assembly towards M. de la Luzerne himself, as having been formerly of the plot (as they call it) with Breteuil and Broglio, will probably occasion him to be out of office soon.

The Treasury Board have no doubt attended to the necessity of giving timely orders for the payment of the February interest at Amsterdam. I am well informed that our credit is now the first at that exchange, (England not borrowing at present.) Our five per cent. bonds have risen to ninety-seven and ninety-nine. They have been heretofore at ninety-three. There are at this time several companies and individuals here, in England and Holland, negotiating to sell large parcels of our liquidated debts. A bargain was concluded by one of these the other day for six hundred thousand dollars. In the present state of our credit, every dollar of this debt will probably be transferred to Europe within a short time.

September 20th. The combination of bankers and other ministerial tools had led me into the error (when I wrote my last letter) into which they had led most people, that the loan lately opened here went on well. The truth is that very little has been borrowed, perhaps not more than six or eight millions. The King and his Ministers were yesterday to carry their plate to the Mint. The ladies are giving up their jewels to the National Assembly. A contribution of plate in the time of Louis XV. is said to have carried about eight millions to the Treasury. Plate is much more common now, and, therefore, if the example prevail now in the same degree it did then, it will produce more. The contribution of jewels will hardly be general, and will be unproductive. M. Necker is, on the

25th, to go to the Assembly to make some proposition. The hundredth penny is talked of.

The Assembly proceeds slowly in the forming their Constitution. The original vice of their numbers causes this, as well as a tumultuous manner of doing business. They have voted that the elections of the Legislature shall be biennial; that it shall be a single body; but they have not yet decided what shall be its number, or whether they shall be all in one room, or in two, (which they call a division into sections.) They have determined that the King shall have a suspensive and iterative veto; that is, that after negativing a law, it cannot be presented again until after a new election. If he negatives it then, it cannot be presented a third time till after another new election. If it be then presented, he is obliged to pass it. This is perhaps justly considered as a more useful negative than an absolute one, which a King would be afraid to use. M. Necker's influence with the Assembly is nothing at all. Having written to them, by order of the King, on the subject of the veto before it was decided, they refused to let his letter be read. Again, lately, when they desired the sanction of the King to their proceedings of the 4th of August, he wrote, in the King's name, a letter to them, remonstrating against an immediate sanction of the whole; but they persisted, and the sanction was given. His disgust at this want of influence, together with the great difficulties of his situation, make it believed that he is desirous of resigning.

The public stocks were extremely low the day before yesterday. The caisse d'escompte at three thousand six hundred and forty, and the loan of one hundred and twenty-five millions, of 1784, was at fifteen per cent. loss. Yesterday they rose a little.

The sloth of the Assembly (unavoidable from their number) has done the most sensible injury to the public cause. The patience of a people who have less of that quality than any other nation in the world, is worn thread-bare. Time has been given to the Aristocrats to recover from their panic, to cabal, to sow dissensions in the Assembly, and distrust out of it. It has been a misfortune that the King and Aristocracy together have not been able to make a sufficient resistance to hoop the Patriots in a compact body. Having no common enemy of such force as to render their union necessary, they have suffered themselves to divide. The Assembly now consists of four distinct parties.