TO JOHN KEAN.' GERMANTOWN, Nov. 16, 1793. Th. Jefferson presents his compliments to mr. Kean & congratulates him sincerely on his and mrs. Keans' having escaped the dangers of the season. Thinking it possible that the members of Congress (retaining the horrors of the yellow fever which prevail at a distance) may remove to Lancaster, & on so short notice as to prevent Th. J. from settling his affairs in Philadelphia, he thinks it best to do that while he has time, & for that purpose it would be convenient for him to command his salary of the present quarter. He therefore begs the favor of mr. Kean to put the note which accompanies this into the proper channel for discount; and if he will be so kind when it is decided on, as to send a line of information for Th. J. to his office on Market street he will be much obliged to him. Will the form of this note render an order from mr. Taylor requisite to authorise Th. J. to receive the money? TO JAMES MADISON. MAD. MSS. GERMANTOWN, Nov. 17, 1793. DEAR SIR,-I have got good lodgings for Monroe & yourself, that is to say, a good room with a fireplace & two beds, in a pleasant & convenient posi 1 An officer in the Bank of the United States. From the original in the possession of the editor. VOL. VI.-29 tion, with a quiet family. They will breakfast you, but you must mess in a tavern; there is a good one across the street. This is the way in which all must do, and all I think will not be able to get even half beds. The President will remain here I believe till the meeting of Congress, merely to form a point of union for them before they can have acquired information & courage. For at present there does not exist a single subject in the disorder, no new infection having taken place since the great rains the 1st of the month, & those before infected being dead or recovered. There is no doubt you will sit in Philadelphia, & therefore I have not given Monroe's letter to Sechel. I do not write to him, because I know not whether he is at present moving by sea or by land, & if by the latter, I presume you can communicate to him.-Wayne has had a convoy of 22. wagons of provisions, and 70. men cut off 15. miles in his rear by the Indians. 6. of the men were found on the spot scalped, the rest supposed taken. He had nearly reached Fort Hamilton. R. has given notice that he means to resign. Genet by more & more denials of powers to the President and ascribing them to Congress, is evidently endeavoring to sow tares between them, & at any event to curry favor with the latter to whom he means to turn his appeal, finding it was not likely to be well received with the people. Accept both of you my sincere affection. TO THE FRENCH MINISTER. J. MSS. GERMANTOWN, November 22, 1793. SIR,-In my letter of Obtober 2, I took the liberty of noticing to you, that the commission of consul to M. Dannery ought to have been addressed to the President of the United States. He being the only channel of communication between this country and foreign nations, it is from him alone that foreign nations or their agents are to learn what is or has been the will of the nation; and whatever he communicates as such, they have a right, and are bound to consider as the expression of the nation, and no foreign agent can be allowed to question it, to interpose between him and any other branch of Government, under the pretext of either's transgressing their functions, nor to make himself the umpire and final judge between them. I am, therefore, sir, not authorized to enter into any discussions with you on the meaning of our constitution in any part of it, or to prove to you, that it has ascribed to him alone the admission or interdiction of foreign agents. I inform you of the fact by authority from the President. I had observed to you that we were persuaded, that, in the case of the consul Dannery, the error in the address had proceeded from no intention in the Executive Council of France to question the functions of the President, and therefore no difficulty was made in issuing the commission. We are still under the same persuasion. But in your letter of the 14th instant, you personally question the authority of the President, and, in consequence of that, have not addressed to him the commissions of Messrs. Pennevert and Chervi, making a point of this formality on your part; it becomes necessary to make a point of it on ours also; and I am therefore charged to return you those commissions, and to inform you that, bound to enforce respect to the order of things established by our constitution, the President will issue no exequatur to any consul or vice consul, not directed to him in the usual form, after the party from whom it comes, has been apprized that such should be the address. CABINET DECISIONS. W. MSS. [Nov. 23. 1793.] At sundry meetings of the heads of departments & Attorney General from the 1st to the 21st of Nov. 1793. at the President's several matters were agreed upon as stated in the following letters from the Secretary of State. to wit. Nov. 8. Circular letter to the representatives of France, Gr. Brit. Spain & the U. Netherlands, fixing provisorily the extent of our jurisdiction into the sea at a sea-league. 10. Circular do to the district attornies, notifying the same, & committing to them the taking depositions in those cases. Same date. Circular to the foreign representatives, notifying how depositions are to be taken in those cases. The substance of the preceding letters were agreed to by all, & the rough draughts were submitted to them & approved. Nov. 14. To Mr. Hammond, that the U. S. are not bound to restore the Roehampton. This was agreed by all, the rough draught was submitted to & approved by Col: Hamilton & Mr. Randolph. Gen! Knox was absent on a visit to Trenton. 10. Letters to Mr. Genet & Hammond, & the 14. to Mr. Hollingsworth for taking depositions in the cases of the Coningham & Pilgrim. 15. Do to Genet, Hammond & Mr. Rawle for deposns. in the case of the William. 14. Do to Hollingsworth to ascertain whether Mr. Moissonier had passed sentence on the Roehampton & Pilgrim. These last ment letters of the 10th 14th & 15th were as to their substance agreed on by all, the draughts were only communicated to Mr. Randolph and approved by him. Nov. 13. To Mr. Hammond. enquiring when we shall have an answer on the inexecution of the treaty. The substance agreed by all. The letter was sent off without communication, none of the gentlemen being at Germantown. 22. To Mr. Genet. returning the commissions of Pennevert & Chervi because not addressed to the Presiden. Same date. To do enquiring whether the Lovely lass, Prince William Henry & Jane of Dublin have been given up, and if not, requiring that they be now restored to owners. These were agreed to by all as to their matter, and the letters themselves were submitted before they were sent to the President, the Secretary of War & the Attorney General, the Secretary of the Treasury absent. Same date. To Mr. Gore for authentic evidence of Dannery's protest on the President's revocation of Duplaine's Exequatur. The substance agreed to by all. The letter sent off before communication. TO ARCHIBALD STUART.1 GERMANTOWN Nov. 24. 1793. DEAR SIR,-When I had the pleasure of seeing you at Monticello you mentioned to me that sheep could be procured at or about Staunton, good & cheap, and were kind enough to offer your aid in procuring them. Reflecting on this subject, I find it will be much better to buy & drive them now, before they have young ones, & before the snow sets in, than to wait till the spring. I therefore take the liberty of enclosing you a 40. Doll. bank post note, which I will beg the favor of you to lay out for me in sheep, taking time between the purchase & delivery, to give notice to Mr. Randolph at Monticello to have them sent for, the letter to be directed to him, or in his absence to Samuel Biddle overseer at Monticello. Your endorsement on the post note will transfer & make it payable to bearer, and consequently will be cash to anybody at Staunton or Richmond who wishes to remit to Philadelphia; or the custom house officer at Rich 1 From the original in the possession of the Virginia Historical Society. |