right to more authority than they themselves ever exerted; ngr is any man ignorant, that our Lord Jesus Christ only charged them with functions entirely sppiritual-1st, With the preaching of the gospel. 2dly, with the care of the propagation of it. 3dly, With the administration of the sacraments (that is, of those which are spiritual.) 4thly. With the care of the church."" They are the same principles as were published by father Paul in his Rights of Sovereigns and Subjects; or to ascend to a much higher authority, in the books of the New Testament, by the Supreme Head of the christian church, who declared, my kingdom is not of this world.

The measures adopted and persisted in by the emperor, occasioned great commotions at Rome. The pope had several conferences on the subject with his cardinals, in which, notwithstanding his great age, he determined on a journey to Vienna. This was notified to his most dear son in Jesus Christ, Joseph, illustrious apostolic king of Hungary, also of Bohemia, king eJect of the Romans, in a brief addressed to him, and given at Rome by Pope Pius VI. on the 15th of Debember, 1781, and of his pontificate the 7th year. Joseph in his anwser, told his most holy father, that he should receive him with all the respect and attention due to his exalted station; but that the journey would be superfluous, as he was absolutely determined in his judgment. The journey was however undertaken, and the sovereign Roman pontiff arrived at Vienna March the 22d, where he remained till April the 22d, when he set out on his return to Rome, fully convinced that his most dear son had sent him: true answer.

15

LETTER

XII

Roxbury, May 23, 1782,

THE acts of congress demand our first attentionOn the

er in chief to agree to the exchange of earl Cornwallis, by composition, provided that the honorable Henry Laurens, esq. shall be liberated, and proper assurances obtained that all accounts for the support of the convention prisoners, and all other prisoners of war shall be speedily settled and discharged.

The success which had attended the operation of the allied forces in Virginia, and other favorable appearances conspiring,

the

the French court turned their attention toward the procuring from congress the appointment of those American commissioners for negociating a peace, and with those instructions that would be perfectly agreeable to them. Sundry communications from the minister plenipotentiary were laid before that august body of delegates from the United States, which were referred to the secretary for foreign affairs, who on the 8th of February delivered in a report, part of which was agreed to, and the remainder referred to a committee. Mr. John Adams was so far from being approved of by Mons. de Vergennes, as the sole negociator in that impor tant business, that the French minister labored to have him wholly excluded; and complained heavily of his stiffness and tenaciousness. Letters had passed between them upon the subject of the resolve for affixing the paper money at forty for one, which Vergennes considered as an act of bankruptcy. Mr. Adams persisted in defending the proceeding with so much resolution, that the French minister at length informed him, that the king enjoined silence for the future on the subject. The measures which had been pursued in Holland by Mr. Adams, were also displeasing, as they traversed the policy of the French court. Letters were at length sent to the French plenipotentiary at Philadelphia, expressing the opinion of his court, that they should not be able to do business in concert with Mr. Adams. When the same had been communicated to congress, a committee was appointed to confer with the Chevalier de Luzerne on the affair. A leading person in the committee was unwilling that the American minister should be sacrificed to the displeasure of the French court, when the offence was occasioned by his zeal to serve his country. It was therefore proposed, that he should be instructed to do no one thing without the consent and approbation of the French court: but that he should attend to his former instructions, and endeavor all in his power to obtain the fishery, &c. but not to make them a sine qua non. This did not satisfy; for it was observed, that notwithstanding such instructions, Mr. Adams might obstruct the negociations by not joining in them. The said person judging it would be safest to put confidence in the French, moved that Mr. Adams should be ultimately directed and guided by the sentiments of the French court, which being agreed to and communicated, satisfied the Chevalier. Afterward it was thought adviseable by some of the southern delegates, that others should be joined with Mr. Adams; and accordingly congress agreed that the honorable John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, John Jay and Henry Laurens, should be their commissioners for negociating a peace.Their commissions were accompanied with the following instruc

tions" You are to concur in behalf of the United States, with his most Christian majesty, in accepting the mediation proposed by the empress of Russia and the emperor of Germany.-You are to accede to no treaty of peace, 1. which shall not effectually secure the independence and sovereignty of the Thirteen States, according to the form and effect of the treaties subsisting between the said states and his most Christian majesty; and 2. in which the said treaties shall not be left in their full force and validity. As to boundaries and other particulars we refer you to the instructions given Mr. Adams, dated the 14th of August 1779, and 18th of October 1780. We think it unsafe at this distance to tie you up by absolute and peremptory directions, on any other subject than the two essential articles above mentioned. You are at liberty to secure the interests of the United States, in such manner as circumstances may direct; and as the state of the belligerent, and disposition of the mediating powers may require.-You are to make the most candid and confidential communications upon all subjects to the minister of the king of France: to undertake nothing in the negociation for peace or truce without their knowledge and concurrence, and ultimately to govern yourselves by their advice and opinion, endeavoring in your whole conduct to make them sensible, how much we rely on his majesty's influence for effectual support, in every thing necessary to the present security or future prosperity of the United States.-If a difficulty should occur in the course of the negociation for peace, from the backwardness of the British to make a formal acknowledgment of our independence, you are at liberty to agree to a truce, or to make such other concessions as may not affect the substance of what we contend for, and provided that Britain be not left in possession of any part of the Thirteen United States."

7

The committee to whom was referred the memorial of the minister of France, were directed by congress to communicate confidentially to the said minister, the substance of the foregoing instructions. The commissions and instructions were sent to France soon enough to admit of their being received early in May.

On Sunday the 24th of March, capt. Joshua Huddy, who commanded the troops at the block-house on Tom's river in Monmouth county, New-Jersey, was attacked by a number of refugees from New-York; and taken after defending himself gallantly till all his ammunition was expended. He was kept in close custody; and on Monday the 8th of April was told, "That he was ordered to be hanged." Four days after (12th) he was sent out with a party of refugees, and hanged about ten o'clock on the heights of Middletown. The following label was affixed to his

breast

breast" We the refugees, having with grief, long beheld the 'cruel murders of our brethren, and finding nothing but such measures daily carrying into execution-we therefore determine not to suffer without taking vengeance for the numerous cruelties; and thus begin, (and I say may those lose their liberty, who do not follow on) and have made use of captain Huddy as the first object to present to your view; and further determine to hang man for man while there is a refugee existing. Up goes HUDDY for PHILIP WHITE." Philip White was taken by a party of the Jersey people on the 30th of March, and was killed in attempting to make his escape afterward.

:

When this affair was made known to gen. Washington, he proposed a number of questions, on the case of captain Huddy, to the general officers and others, who were for retaliation. However, instead of immediately executing an officer of equal rank with Huddy upon receiving proofs of his muder, Washington wrote to Clinton, that unless the perpetrators of that deed were delivered up, he should be under the disagreeable necessity of retaliating. On the 20th, he sent a letter to congress, with the copy of a memorial from the inhabitants of the county of Monmouth, and sundry affidavits respecting the death of the captain which produced the following resolution on the 29th"That congress having deliberately considered the said letter and the papers attending it, and being deeply impressed with the necessity of convincing the enemies of these United States, by the most decided conduct, that the repetition of their unprecedented and inhuman cruelties, so contrary to the laws of nations and of war, will be no longer suffered with impunity, do unanimously approve of the firm and judicious conduct of the commander in chief in his application to the British general at New-York, and do hereby assure him of their firmest support in his fixed purpose of exemplary retaliation. What alteration may be produced by the change of British generals, remains to be discovered. Sir Guy Carleton arrived at New-York on the 5th of May, and is now commander in chief of the king's troops in America. From his tried and known humanity, it may be concluded with certainty, that no acts of barbarity will be supported by his countenance.

Negociations were carried on the last year between some leading persons belonging to Vermont and the British in Canada and New-York; which produced jealousies in the minds of several, who thought that the rulers meant to unite that country to GreatBritain, contrary to the wish and without the knowledge of the inhabitantis in general. Mr. Thomas Chittenden, the governor, was addressed in a letter of January the 1st, upon the subject, by a gen

a gentleman of the first consequence; to whom he gave the most positive assurances, that such negociations were so far innocent, that there never was any serious intention of joining Great-Britain in their attempts to subjugate the United States. But the intercourse had undoubtedly a bad tendency; and gave the British some ground to hope, that they should annex the people of Vermont to their interests.

General Washington wrote to gov. Hancock on the 31st of January. The letter was upon public business, and urged the speedy, pointed, and effectual compliance of the state, with the requisitions of congress for completing their battalions; that so all the fruits of the successes of the preceding campaign might not be thrown away, by an inglorious winter of languor and inactivity. It insisted on the necessity of having a powerful army early in the field. "Soon" says the general," might we hope to enjoy all the blessings of peace, if we could see again the same animation in the cause of our country inspiring every breast, the same passion for freedom and military glory impelling our youths to the field, and the same disinterested patriotism pervading every rank of men, as was conspicuous at the commencement of this glorious revolution." He pressed the furnishing of the recruits in season, and the establishing of checks to prevent impositions as to the quality of the men, that none might be accepted but able bodied and effective, and that it might not be attempted to im pose upon them decrepit or improper men or boys as soldiers. Near the end of April he observed, that the efficient operating force of the northern army could be no more than 7,553 rank and file; and that he should be uncandid, was he hot to acknow ledge, that he did not expect it would be increased by recruits in the course of the campaign to more than 10,000 fit for duty in the field. He estimated the royal force in New-York, including their established corps of provincials at 9,000, and their militia refugees and independent companies at 4000, in all 13,000 beside about 3,300 at Charleston, and about 700 at Savannah.

The bank of North-America opened at Philadelphia' on the 7th of January. Through the establishment of it, Mr. Morris, the financier, was enabled to support credit, and to keep things in motion till the 23d of April. Without that he must have stopped; for the public money was exhausted, and he had not at that hour received one farthing from any state in the union. There was too much cause for conaplaining of a disgraceful languor in most of the governments; and which has its origin in selfish views, party spirit, or worse motives. The states were half a million of dollars in debt on this year's taxes, which had been raised

by