your very affectionate,

1 The Pennsylvania Packet.



TO CHARLES CHAUNCY.

[MS., Samuel Adams Papers, Lenox Library.]

PHILAD Decr 25 1778

REVEREND & MUCH ESTEEMED SIR

I am greatly indebted to you for your very acceptable Letter of the 7th of Novr by Mr Temple. That Gentleman, in my Opinion took an unguarded Step on his late Arrival in New York. I mean his writing a Letter to the late President Mr Laurens requesting Permission to pay his Respects to Congress, and another Letter to myself. This excited a Suspicion in the Minds of the true Friends of our Cause, that what they had before seen in the English News papers, viz that he & Dr Berkenhout were sent to America by the British Ministry might not be without Grounds. This Desire of paying a respectful Visit to Congress was judgd to be a Reason merely ostensible; and the Time & Manner of his leaving England, the Company he came with and the Readiness with which the British General granted him the Liberty of sending his Letters, the Contents of which must most undoubtedly have been under his Inspection, it was said, afforded Reason to believe his real Design was to gain an honorable Admission into this City, & the Confidence of Members of Congress & others thereby the more easily to cooperate with the British Commissioners, and carry their Designs into Effect. The Jealousy of the People when it is properly directed or as some chuse to call it, a prudent Caution, is in my Opinion one of the best Securities of publick Liberty. And we must allow them to give all that Weight to a Train of Circumstances respecting our Friend, which in other Instances we shd ourselves judge to be reasonable. His Friends have given him high Recommendations. But say others, his Friends may be partial to him. His Connections are among the warmest Patriots. His Testimonials come from the most virtuous Citizens. They have a good Opinion of him. True, and this might be a strong Inducement to a politick Minister to make Choice of him, & may make him the fittest Instrument to answer his Purpose. For my own Part I know Mr Temples former Character Conduct & Sufferings & have also a good opinion of him. I have done him the most substantial Acts of Friendship in my Power. But so deep rooted were the Suspicions of him and so general, that I have been under a Necessity of forbearing to visit him so often as I otherwise should have done, lest I might lose that consistent Character and that Confidence which it is my Duty as far as I am able, to support, in the Minds of Congress, the Minister of our Ally & the People of America. I have Reason to believe that I am on Terms of Friendship with the Sieur Gerard. In private Conversation with him, I purposely mentiond Mr Temples Name, & I conclude we concur in Sentiment that however upright the Heart of any Gentleman may be yet if an Opinion prevails among the People that he is a secret Emissary from the Enemy, his Residence near the Congress, might, at this Juncture especially, make improper Impressions on the Minds of our Friends abroad. Mr Temple has lately taken his Leave of this City & I believe some Gentlemen of Character have since conceivd a more favorable Opinion of him than they did before.

You have my hearty Thanks for your Sermon lately publishd which I have read with pleasure. The Evil you therein mention is indeed alarming. Amidst the great Variety of pressing Affairs, Congress is devoting certain Hours of every Day to investigate a radical Cure; and I am in strong Hopes that an effectual Plan will shortly be laid before the General Assemblies of the several States.

When General Gates was orderd to Boston a considerable Embarkation of the Enemies Troops had been made at N York & it was apprehended they would attempt a Landing somewhere near that Place. His military Abilities and Experience, his political Principles & Attachments and the Confidence which the Troops and People of the Eastern States had in him, were the Considerations which indued his being sent thither. Had the Enemy turnd their whole Force that way of Course the Commander in Chief would have followd. General Heath has given entire Satisfaction to Congress during his Command there. The Change took Place on the Spur of the Occasion, and probably in the Spring a different Arrangemt may be made.

I am my dear Sir with the most cordial Esteem & Affectionate,

your Friend

& very humble Servt,



1779



TO SAMUEL COOPER.

[MS , Samuel Adams Papers, Lenox Library.]

Jany 3 -79

MY DEAR SIR

I embrace the opportunity which now offers of writing a few Lines to you. In my last I told you I had many things to say particularly concerning A L & S D Esqrs 1. If I could have the Pleasure of sitting with you by a fire Side, I would more freely open my Mind to you than I chuse to do upon Paper, considering the Risque of its falling into wrong hands. One of these gentlemen, as I was informd in the year 74 by some who were well acquainted with him, was of a dubious political Character, and was appointed a Delegate in Congress by a Majority of only one of the Electors; it being thought that his own Vote turnd it in his favor. In 75 he was again elected; and he very early attachd him self to Men of different Sentiments from those which most if not all your Delegates brought with them from your Country & strenuously maintained. This Difference of Sentiment was said to arise from local Attachments, but in Reality they arose from different Principles & Views. What Mr Ds political Principles were if he had any I never could learn. His Views always appeard to me commercial & interrested. Whether I was mistaken or not Time perhaps will soon discover. He was very little known in America till the year 75, if at all in Europe.

The other took an early, decided and active Part in Support of the great Cause. In London he had a great Share in the open Opposition made to the Tyranny of the British Court & their Measures respecting America. There he turnd his Attention from the Practice of Physick to which he had been regularly educated in Edinburgh, to the Study of the Law. This he did by the Advice of some of the most able Advocates for the Liberties of America, from an Opinion they had conceivd of his promising Usefulness to that Cause in that Way. He answerd their Prospects. He constantly aided your Agent the late Mr De Berdt2 to whom his Knowledge of Affairs renderd his Services essential. That his Pen was employd for America in General, his Junius Americanus abundantly testifies; and that, and his other Publications witness his Attachments to Massachusetts Bay & South Carolina in particular. His private Letters to his Friends are written with that Freedom as well as Zeal which would have exposd him to the Risque even of his Life from the Resentment of an unprincipled & nefarious Court, if any of them by Accident or Design had fallen into their Hands. This I know to be true. I must conclude at present with giving it to you as my fix'd Opinion, founded on particular observations, that there is a joynt Combination of political & commercial Men to exclude all vigilant Patriots from publick Councils & Employments knowing that Vigilance & unimpeachd, unsuspected Fidelity will be an effectual Bar to the carrying such politico commercial Plans into Execution. I will write to you again by the first good Opportunity. In the mean time I am with perfect Esteem,

Yr affectionate Friend,

1Arthur Lee and Silas Deane.

2 Cf. Vol. I., page 89 et seq.



TO JAMES WARREN.

[MS., Samuel Adams Papers, Lenox Library,]

PHILADE Jan 6 -79

MY DEAR SIR

In your last you desire to know how Matters have operated since the Recall. I will answer this Question at another Time when I have more Leisure; and at present only say, that Mr Dean arrivd here, I think in July, and in August he was admitted into the House, or to use his own Phrase had an Audience, in which, with as much Vanity as I ever saw in a Man of Sense, he assumd to himself almost the whole Merit of all the Services which had been renderd at least by Americans in France; as if he would have it to be believd that one of his Colleagues had done but little if any thing, the other worse than Nothing, himself every thing. And with as much Spleen & ill Nature he would even go out of the regular Path of Decency & Propriety to draw in Invective and diminish the Characters of the two Mr Lees & Mr Izard.1 In short the publication which you have seen is a Specimen of his Narrative. I have before given you my opinion of that Performance, and shall not trouble you further upon that, than just to remark that his insinuating that Mr W L2 still remains an Alderman of the City of London, because his Name is inserted in that List in the Court Kallendar of 78 discovers something more than Childishness and Folly. His design seems to be at once to prejudice the Reputation of that Gentleman in the Minds of his Countrymen and to hold up the Appearance of glaring Impropriety of Conduct in Congress, in appointing the Alderman of London an American Commissioner; and that this was done through the undue Influence of family Connections; for he takes particular Care to inform his Readers, that the two Brothers in Europe have two Brothers in Congress which cannot be denied. Neither can it be denied, that they are a Family, who have been as early, as uniform, as persevering and as able Patriots as perhaps any in the United States. Mr A L, you are fully sensible was most indefatigable in supporting our Cause in England. By penetrating into the Designs of a most unprincipled Court, he was able to give us the most timely and important Intelligence, which he did at the Risque of his Life; while Mr D was, in the Opinion of some of his own Countrymen as well as others, of a doubtful political Character. Mr Lee continued to transmit to our Friends in France as well as to Congress before he left England, the most accurate Accounts of things there. Such was the opinion entertaind by Congress of his Abilities his Integrity, his Zeal and Attachment to his Country which indeed had been long experiencd, that he was employd as a most useful & necessary Man. The vigilant Eye of so consistent a Patriot, may be formidable to a Combination of political & Commercial Men, who may be aiming to get the Trade, the Wealth, the Power and the Government of America into their own Hands. He must therefore be hunted down; and the young as well as the old Hounds are all ready for the Game.

Adieu,

1 Ralph Izard. Cf. Wharton, Revolutionary Diplomatic Correspondence, Vol. I , p. 589.

2 William Lee. Cf.., Ibid., p. 586.

TO SAMUEL COOPER.

[MS., Samuel Adams Papers, Lenox Library.]

Jany 6 -79

MY DEAR SIR

I wrote to you on the 3d Inst by Express and then promisd to write again by the first good Opportunity. The Bearer of this Letter is a young Gentleman of your Country who is passing thro this place in his way home. He appears sensible, tells me he was educated at H. College, has since studied Physick, was taken at Sea & carried into England, was liberated or made his Escape & went over to France, from Paris he went to Dunkirk on the Encouragement of Mr Dean & enterd Surgeon on board the Revenge Sloop, built by order of a Come of Congress authorizd thereto & at the Continental Expense, and till lately supposd to have ever since remaind Continental Property, but now so invelopd in political Commercial Mystery as that it cannot be ascertaind whether she is ownd by the United States or private Persons, or whether she is the property partly publick & private. I will tell you more of this Matter when the Mystery shall be unraveld if it ever is; in the mean time remember my dear Sir what I said in my last of commercial Combinations.

In the latter End of 75 one of the Characters in my last was left out of the Delegation of the Colony he had represented, and a Number of his Friends gave him a sort of Certificate or Letter of Recommendation as they had before done to one of your Delegates,1 which led me to think it was their Opinion he needed a Prop in his own Country. Soon after, the Congress appointed a secret Committee of Commerce, with a View of procuring from abroad the necessary Articles for carrying on the War. They also appointed a secret Committee of Correspondence. Their Business was to form political Connections abroad & to feel the pulsations of foreign Powers & particularly France. The first of these Committees engagd Mr ——— to go to that Kingdom for the purpose of their Commission & the Corresponding Come took the Advantage of his intended Residence there to facilitate the salutary Purpose of their Appointment. At the same Time they wrote a Letter to Mr —— then in England from whom the Congress had before receivd the most accurate Intelligence, requesting a Correspondence with him & pledging Secrecy & Confidence. Mr —— arrivd in France in June 76. Thus you see we had an Intelligencer to let us know what was doing or meditating against us in England; and a political Commercial Agent who was to inform us what was doing or could be done for us in France. The one had before settled a Correspondence & formd Connections in several parts of the Continent of Europe & particularly France; the other was a perfect Stranger in every Nation in Europe, but bearing Letters to considerable Men there. The one was altogether the political Man, the other had to do with Commerce as well as politicks. The one by his Address obtaind in England such Assurances as satisfied him that France would afford such Aid to America as she could consistently, the other was better skilld in the commercial Part of his Agency than the political. The one in London in the Months of March and April discoverd that he might successfully & actually did treat with a Merchant in France of no Capital but a favorite at Court for a Supply to the Value of L200,000 sterling—the other arrivd in the Month of June following, found him out & was somehow concernd in forwarding the Supplys thus contracted for. I dare say you are apt to draw this Conclusion that the one was the political Negotiator in this Instance & the other the Commercial Agent only—yet, will you believe it, it is positively affirmd that the one did every thing & the other Nothing. I will explain it to you in my next.

1 Cf. Vol. III., p. 269.

TO SAMUEL COOPER.

[MS., Samuel Adams Papers, Lenox Library.]

Jany 19-79

MY DEAR SIR

Inclosd is the Newspaper of this Day. Philalethes in attempting to show that the Supplys from France were not a Present from that Court, which nobody that I know of has asserted, has abundantly proved one thing which Common Sense has insisted on viz that A Lee had been negociating with Mr Beaumarchais for those Supplys, before Mr Dean arrivd there. No one I suppose would have thought of weighing Mr Deans Merit so critically, had he appeard content with his full Share of it. But when he takes so much Pains to represent his Colleagues as having done Nothing, it becomes a Piece of Justice to enquire whether they have in Reality been such unconcernd or impotent Spectators of their Countrys Misery and Want. Dr Franklin has the Honor of being Mr Deans venerable Friend; Mr Lee, an insignificant or troublesome Colleague. And yet Mary Johnsons assiduous Applications procurd the sending a Ship loaded with Merchandise & Stores to the Value of twenty five Thousand Pounds Sterling; and this Negociation was settled before Mr Deans Arrival in France. Mr Lee acted as the political Minister. He pressd on Mr Beaumarchais "the maintaining the War in America as the great Object." And indeed it was so. Mr Lee and every Man of Discernment knew, that it was the Policy of France to consider it in this View. On this Consideration he succeeded, and yet, says Mr Beaumarchais, "the Gratitude of Congress is due to the indefatigable Pains Mr Dean has taken thro' the whole of the Commercial Transaction." The Truth is, as I suppose, that Mr Dean did not care to return without some such Letter of Recommendation; and it was probably as easily obtaind as the other which I mentiond in my last. Mr Beaumarchais is a Man of Ingenuity & Wit. Horace was the Delight of the Court of Augustus. A Royal Letter & a Snuff Box, as I once told one of my Friends, are Things of Course, especially in the Honey Moon of National Matrimony. A Monarch politely compliments thro' the Minister the Ministers Sovereign. When the Merchant and the Courtier unite in one Man, the Courtier is safe in imitating his Master, and pays his Compliment in the Stile & Manner of the Merchant.

Mr Deans Friends are in hopes he will be sent to Holland as a Reward for his good Services, from whence he may probably send or bring another mercantile Letter of Recommendation. Doubtless deep Commercial Connections may be formd there. They are willing Mr J A should go to Spain. The Design of this is to get Mr A L removd from thence. Others are for sending Mr A to Holland leaving Mr L in Spain, to whose Influence in that Country our Armies are indebted for Supplys of Blanketts Shoes and Stockins. I am sorry to be obligd to think, that a Monopoly of Trade, and not the Liberty of their Country, is the sole Object of some Mens Views. This is the Cake which they hope shortly to slice and share among themselves.

Adieu,



TO JONATHAN TRUMBULL.

[MS., Samuel Adams Papers, Lenox Library.]

PHILAD Feb 6 -79

SIR

The Marine Come have done themselves the Honor of writing to you by this Post. The great Dammage which has been done to the Trade at the Southward & particularly Chessapeak Bay by the Enemies Privateers has causd such pressing Demands for the Aid of our Ships of War as laid us under the Necessity of ordering the Queen of france immediately on a Cruize that Way. This I mention as a Reason why she could not be employd with the Confederacy & the other Ships but her Destination will remain a Secret.

I hope the Expedition proposd by your Excy & agreed to by the Come will be performd in 2 or 3 Days, for I fear if it should be known to the Enemy, not only the desired Event wd be prevented but there would be danger of our losing our Ships.

I have only time to beg the favor of your Excy to forward the inclosd by the first Oppty by the post or otherwise.



TO JOHN WINTHROP.

[MS., Samuel Adams Papers, Lenox Library.]

PHILADE Feb 6 1779

MY DEAR SIR

I have receivd your favor of the 21st of January. Every Body sees that the Depreciation of the Paper Currency is owing to the Floods of it which have been necessarily issued. In Addition to which a great Quantity more especially of the Emissions of 20 May 1777 & 11 April 1778 has been counterfeited. This last Consideration was sufficient Inducement to the calling out of Circulation all the Bills of those Emissions as speedily as possible. The lessening the Quantity in Circulation is the only Means of restoring the Value & Credit of the Remainder. It would therefore be a happy Event if every possessor of them would receive Loan Office Certificates for them instead of new Bills in June next but this cannot be expected. In proportion as this may be done the only effectual Means, besides that of taxing which I hope will be chearfully submitted to by the People, of remedying the great Evil will have its effect. Congress have not cried down those Emissions, as the Expression is or resolvd that the Bills should sink in the Hands of those who would not exchange them for Loan Office Certificates, as has been done in the Eastern States. This might have been too harsh a Remedy. They have left it in the Option of the Possessors to receive either such Certificates or new Bills. This is the obvious Intention of their Resolutions on the Subject. The Wish of every discerning honest Man must be as obvious, viz that as many of the Bills may sink in the Loan Offices as the People can possibly spare, and as soon as possible. I think therefore you have judgd right of their Views. It would be an Act of Charity and a great Service to the publick if those who can afford to put their Money to Interest would ease their poorer fellow Citizens who are possessd of those Bills, by exchanging them for other Bills without a Discount.

I am &c,



TO SAMUEL ALLYNE OTIS.

[MS., Samuel Adams Papers, Lenox Library]

PHILADE Feby 10 1779

DEAR SIR

The late Mr Andrews before his sudden & unexpected Death had written to a young Kinsman of mine in this place, Mr Richard Checkley, proposing to him to go to Boston with a View of employing him in his Warehouse. I know not whether Mr A intended to employ him in his own separate Affairs or in those in which he was joyntly concernd with you for the publick. Mr C had not heard of his Death till he was just about setting off on his Journey to Boston when I informd him of it. He is a young Man who, I am told, bears a good Character and is used to Business. If you can employ him it will be doing him a singular Benefit and I shall acknowledge it as a great favor. I ask it only on this Condition, that it may be perfectly consistent with your Views. I am with Cordial Esteem, Sir

yr hble Servt



TO JAMES WARREN.

[MS., Samuel Adams Papers, Lenox Library.]

PHILADE Feb 12 -79

MY DEAR SR

Will you be so kind as to present my due Regards to Mrs Warren and let her know that immediately on my receiving her Letter for Miss Wray I deliverd it to the Care of my worthy Friend Colo Laurens who has since informd me that he has forwarded it in his own Packet to South Carolina.

I have lately written several Letters to my Friend Dr C & have informd him that you & he & Mr S are my only confidential Correspondents in Boston. I have other trusty Friends there, but I have not Leisure to write to them all. I have expressd my wish that the honest & virtuous Friends of our Country would cultivate a cordial Esteem for each other. I am affraid there are little Jealousies among them which prevent their uniting their Councils and Efforts against that Inundation of Levity Vanity Luxury Dissipation & indeed Vice of every kind which I am informd threatens that Country which has heretofore stood with unexampled Firmness in the Cause of Liberty and Virtue. This Torrent must be stemmed, and in order to do it effectually, there must be Associations of Men of unshaken Fortitude. A general Dissolution of Principles & Manners will more surely overthrow the Liberties of America than the whole Force of the Common Enemy. While the People are virtuous they cannot be subdued; but when once they lose their Virtue they will be ready to surrender their Liberties to the first external or internal Invader. How necessary then is it for those who are determind to transmit the Blessings of Liberty as a fair Inheritance to Posterity, to associate on publick Principles in Support of publick Virtue. I do verily believe, and I may say it inter Nos, that the Principles & Manners of N Engd, producd that Spirit which finally has establishd the Independence of America; and Nothing but opposite Principles and Manners can overthrow it. If you are of my Mind, and I think you are, the Necessity of supporting the Education of our Country must be strongly impressd on your Mind. It gives me the greatest Concern to hear that some of our Gentlemen in the Country begin to think the Maintenance of Schools too great a Burden. I wish they could hear the Encomiums that are given to N Engd by some of the most sensible & publick spirited Gentlemen in the southern States, for the Care & Expence which have been freely borne by our Ancestors & continued to this time for the Instruction of youth. Virginia is duly sensible of the great Importance of Education, and, as a friend in that Country informs me, has lately adopted an effectual Plan for that necessary Purpose. If Virtue & Knowledge are diffusd among the People, they will never be enslavd. This will be their great Security. Virtue & Knowledge will forever be an even Balance for Powers & Riches. I hope our Countrymen will never depart from the Principles & Maxims which have been handed down to us from our wise forefathers. This greatly depends upon the Example of Men of Character & Influence of the present Day. This is a Subject my Heart is much set upon. But I fear I have wearied your Patience. I will conclude with my most ardent Prayer that our last Days may be our best Days and our last Works our best Works.

Adieu my dear Friend,

Pay my due Regards to your Circle in Plymouth. Are you intimate with Mr D. I mentiond him to you in a former Letter as an excellent Republican.



TO THE BOARD OF WAR AT BOSTON.

[MS., Samuel Adams Papers, Lenox Library.]

PHILAD Feb 16 1779

GENTN

I recd your Letr of 27 Jan and immediately communicated such of the Contents as relate to your Application to the Govr of N Y, to the Delegates of that State. They assured me that the Govrs refusing to grant a Permit to Mr Shepperd for the Transportation of Flour from thence must have been owing to the real & very great Scarcity of that Article there; and they desired me to satisfy you in that point, fearing that it mt be supposd to arise from other Motives. I will consult with my Colleagues and if any Means can be used by us to ensure Success to your Application from that Quarter you may depend upon our Exertion.

I am inclined to think that Govr C, who in my Opinion is a truly good Man, is apprehensive of being imposd upon by Speculators, unless he uses great Caution; and he may perhaps not be fully apprisd of your asking under the express Authority & Commission of Massachusetts State. And yet I shd suppose your Letter to him would have been sufficient without authenticated Documents manifesting your Appointment. South Carolina is at so great a Distance that no Interposition of ours could avail, if it were necessary in the present Instance; but I am of Opinion there will be no Difficulty there in Case your Vessel arrives, the Embargo being over. I will write to Mess P in B & endeavor, shd there be any obstructions there to get them removd. A Come of Con have under Consideration a Letter from the Council of M B1 on the Subject of provisions, & I am informd they are ready to make Report.

If any thing shd occur which will make it expedient for me to write you further I shall not omit the first Oppty. In the mean time I am &c,



TO SAMUEL COOPER.

[MS., Samuel Adams Papers, Lenox Library.]

PHILAD Feb 21-79

MY DEAR SIR

By the last Post I sent to Mr W C2 some Extracts from an extraordinary Letter which I hope he has receivd. I think our Apprehensions are thereby strengthned, of an intended Monopoly of all the Trade and I may add of the richest Lands in America. The private & publick Letters of my Friend on the other side of the Atlantick having honestly stated Facts and led to important Discoveries, have renderd him an object of the hottest Resentment of interrested Men. I protest to you solemnly that the warm Affection I feel for a Man whom I never saw, is founded in a thorough Conviction of his long and unremitted Attachment to the Interests of America & of Mankind. But I will leave this Subject for the present.

The Spring advances, and very probably some new Overtures may soon be made, if it is only to feel the Pulse of America. Perhaps there may be a real Design in the British Cabinet to propose Terms of Accommodation. We ought then to be previously thoughtful of so serious and momentous a Subject. I have Reason to think that Britain finds herself perplexd in the forming of Alliances and procuring Resources to her Satisfaction. She has repeatedly and in vain applied to Russia first for Ships of War & then for Troops. Her disappointment may be owing to the superior Policy of France, who by interesting Russia as well as her self in the Affairs of Prussia & the Empress of Germany may have made it improper for Russia to take any Measure which might tend to involve Europe in War. I am affraid if we should be seriously engagd in negociating a Peace, there would be an intemperate pressing from without Doors for a speedy Conclusion, which would precipitate the Affair to our Disadvantage. It is probable that Peace may be the desireable Object in all the Courts in Europe while they are making the necessary Arrangements and preparing for War if that shd be the Event. If Britain should refuse to acknowledge the Independence of America a War with France & Spain wd probably ensue and the flame would spread. In that Case, Britain might be obligd so far to withdraw her Troops from America as to leave it in our power with the Spirit of Enterprize to make such Acquisitions as wd ensure a safe & lasting Peace. But if Europe shall remain quiet & Britain with the Acknowledgmt of our Independence shd pro pose Terms of Accommodation, would it be safe for America to leave Canada, Nova Scotia & Florida in her hands. I do not feel my self at a LOSS to answer this Question; but I wish to be fortified with the Sentiments of my judicious Friends. You may easily discern that I write this Letter in the utmost Hurry. Adieu.

1 Massachusetts Bay.

2 William Cooper.

TO MRS. ADAMS.

[MS., Samuel Adams Papers, Lenox Library.]

PHILADE March 7-1779—

MY DEAR BETSY

Yesterday your obliging Letter of the 3d of February was deliverd to me by Mr Hoskins. I thank you for the Concern you express for my Health, which through the Divine Favor I again enjoy as usual. The Advice you give me on this Head shall be duly regarded.

Your Wish that I would resign the Office of Secretary perfectly coincides with my own Inclination. I never sought for that or any other Place. Indeed I never was pleasd with it, for Reasons which you are not unacquainted with. I am very sorry for Mr —— that he should treat me with Unkindness. I never gave any just occasion for it; but if he was bid to do it, how could he disobey? I heartily forgive him, for I do verily believe it did not proceed from the Malevolence of his Heart. To do him Justice I must say he is a good naturd Man, and would do the Duties of that office better than I should. But if he depends upon the Interest of a certain popular Gentleman he may be disappointed; for he proposd last Summer to Mr L, who mentiond it to me with a generous Disdain. But a Change of Place oftentimes induces a Change of Opinion, and even a Promise made in York Town or Philadelphia, may be forgot in the Hurry of Affairs in Boston. I do not think Mr A. is my Enemy; or if he is, I am under no great Apprehensions from it. There are others who are of much more Consideration, at least in their own Estimation than he; and even these might upon certain Conditions be made my Friends. I mean as much my Friends as they are or can be to one another. A few flattering Speeches to this Man, and a Promise to that, of a Vote & Interest to keep him snug in the Possession of Places & Emoluments would effectually secure their gracious Smiles. But who would condescend to such Baseness for the Friendship of any Man? Let those who can do this, enjoy the Fruits of it. I do not covet them upon such Terms. I should become contemptible in my own Eyes; and you know that I had rather be despisd by all the World, hard as my Fate would be, than to be conscious to my self that I deservd Contempt.

I receivd a Letter a few Days ago from France dated the 7th of December, in which my patriotick Friend Arthur Lee is mentiond in Terms of the highest Confidence and Respect. I will give you the following Extracts.—" Your old Friend is a Man of Honor and Integrity "—" He has been of Opinion that the publick Money has been too freely issued here, and has often opposd it."—"Insinuations, I have been told, have been made at Court against him, that he was too friendly to the English, too much attachd to Lord Shelburne, and even that he corresponded with his Lordship and communicated Intelligence to him. This, whoever suggested it, I am perfectly confident was a cruel Calumny, and could not have made Impression, if his Colleagues had contradicted it in the Manner you and I should have done. You and I have had Opportunity to know his invariable Attachment to our Cause long before Hostilities commencd; and I have not a Colour of Ground for Suspicion that from that time to this he has deviated an Iota from the Cause of his Country, in Thought Word or Deed. When he left England, or soon after, he wrote a Letter of mere Compliment to his Lordship, a mere Card to bid him farewell, and receivd such another in Return; which he assures me are all the Letters that ever passd between them, and I have not a Doubt of the Truth of it"—"Some of the Gentlemen of Character who are now in America from this Country, particularly the —— and ——, it is to be feard, have had Prejudices insinuated into them against your old Correspondent. I am extremely sorry for this, because I think it is against a worthy Character, and because I think it will be likely to have unhappy Effects both with you and abroad."

You may show the foregoing Extracts to such of my Confidential Friends as you think proper. They are the Sentiments of one in whom they have great Confidence, and may serve to convince them that the Insinuations of Mr Dean though artfully made and designed to prejudice the Reputation of an honest Man, are groundless, and that Dr Lee, who took an early decided and active Part in this glorious Contest, continues the consistent Patriot.

Your Letters my dear, cannot come to me too frequently. Remember me to my Daughter, Sister Polly, Brother Tommy and other Friends, and be assured that I am

most affectionately

your

March 9th



TO JOHN ADAMS.

[MS., Samuel Adams Papers, Lenox Library.]

Mar 9 [1779]

Mr L will write you fully by this Oppty. I take up my pen chiefly to let you know that I am in the Land of the Living and bear you affectionately on my Mind. While I am in this World I am resolvd that no Vexation shall put me out of Temper if I can possibly command myself. Even old Age which is making Strides towards me shall not prevail to make me peevish. I find that an older Man than I am, can in the apparent Coolness of Mind, stabb a dreaded Rival to the Vitals. His Words are like Honey, but there is a large Mixture of Poison. You who are in the Midst of Life & Usefulness, do not expect to escape the envenomd Shaft, but you have always the Cure at hand, Moderation, Fortitude & Prudence. It matters little what becomes of an old worn out Servt in this World. He has his foot on the Grave & with Pleasure views it. But the virtuous Patriot, who is in the full Exercise of the Powers of Body & Mind, shall have my remaining feeble Voice in his Support agt the insidious Enemy of him & Mankind. I have said eno on this Head, & have not time to begin a new Subject. Adieu.



TO BENJAMIN AUSTIN.

[MS., Samuel Adams Papers, Lenox Library.]

PHILADE Mar 9—79

MY DEAR SIR

Mr Hoskins who arrivd here a few days ago, was kind enough to deliver to me your favor of the 7th of Feb. It gave me a particular pleasure, because I was convincd that you had not totally forgot your old Friend. You see, I rank myself among your friends. HOW often have we chatted together by the fire side, and settled essential Points to mutual Satisfaction. Yet we have not always thought alike of Men who have conducted the noble Contest for the Rights of our Country, which we have been & are still engagd in. I congratulate my Countrymen on our having thus far got through the Conflict, but we are still engagd in it. And I repeat it, because while too many of our Countrymen are flattering themselves with the airy Prospect of Peace, Britain, if we may credit our latest & best Accounts from Europe, is preparing for a vigorous Campaign. It is prudent for us to enquire of the Watchman What of the Night? The Caution given us on another occasion may with propriety be adapted to this. Be ye ready; lest when the Time of Danger approaches, ye be found distracted with the eager Pursuit of Riches, or sleeping in the delusive Lap of pleasure & Dissipation. But this is a Digression from the intended Subject of my Letter. You ask my opinion of two Men who have lately appeard on the publick Stage; and with your usual Frankness, express your own opinion without a Doubt, that Congress will soon convince the one of his Folly & the other of his Weakness. But have you not misunderstood the Characters of these Men? Has not the first by his artful Address conceald his Weakness from the pub-lick Eye, while the other, by an improper Use of the Weapons in his hands, has given Advantage to his Adversary, and thereby discoverd his Folly. Mr Dean had in his first Publication said so much as to make it necessary that some other Person should say more. Common Sense undertook the Task and producd stubborn & undeniable facts, but not contenting himself with relating such facts only as were pertinent to his Argument he gave occasion to the Swarms of Writers against him to avail themselves, by diverting the Attention of his Readers from the proper Point. I will mention an Instance. After he had provd to the Satisfaction of every one, that the Cannon & Stores forwarded to America by Mr Deane, had been negociated by Mary Johnson & Beaumarchais before his Arrival in France, and consequently that the Merit of the Negociation did not belong to Mr Dean, what Necessity was there for Common Sense to mention them as a Present? It was nothing to his purpose; and it was too delicate a Subject for him to touch upon, or to attempt to prove if it had been true. His prudence therefore and even his Veracity was called in Question by his Adversaries, and his Authority & Influence as a Writer of facts lessend. The faithful Historian however, will hereafter unfold the secret Politicks of the present Day. The Newspaper Writings of these two Men, have drawn not only the Conduct but the Characters of others into Dispute. Had Mr Dean been only called upon explicitly to state his Charges, if he had any, against Dr Lee, I believe he would not have attempted it, and a Scrutiny of any Mans Character but his own would have been unnecessary. Although he has insinuated many things against the Doctor, & steppd aside from the Line of Propriety & Decency to bring in Invective, yet I do not recollect that he has explicitly criminated him in either, nor do I believe it is in his Power. If no one steps forward to accuse him, why should his Integrity be doubted? Why should you, my Friend, express yourself in so languid a Tone, "I cant yet but have a great opinion of Dr Lee," and "rather than the Cause of America should be betrayd I would give up the dearest Connections I have on Earth." Has Dr Lee forfeited the good opinion you "always had" of him? Do you doubt his Integrity & Attachment to the Cause of America? Has any one chargd him with Mal Conduct? Shall the mere Insinuations & angry Reflections of a disappointed Man lessen your good opinion of one whom you know to have been, early, decided, active, persevering and inflexible in the Cause of America? If this should be the prevailing Disposition, what honest Man will be safe? The consistent Patriot, after having endurd Fatigue & Danger for the Establishment of publick Liberty, would find himself still in the greatest Perils among his own Countrymen. I will say nothing decisively of Mr Dean at present; but I would assure you of one thing, that were I connected with Dr Lee as a publick Man, and conscious of my own Tardiness, I should think I had every thing to apprehend, not from a peevish, fretful Temper with which interrested Men have attempted to stigmatize him, but from his stern Virtue and Republican Jealousy. I may be partial to Dr Lee. I confess I feel the strongest Obligation to him, for the eminent Services he renderd to America when he was in England, and to the Massachusetts Bay in particular. I hope my Countrymen are not all ungrateful. Some of them, I have been taught to believe are so; otherwise the publick Character of an old Servant would not have been aspersd, nor wd it have been said, as I am informd it has, that he had been bribd to desert his Country. It is his honorable Lot to have Enemies. Honorable, because he flatters himself his Enemies are among the weak & the wicked. I leave my own Character, under God, in the Care of my virtuous fellow Citizens. I will contend for Dr Lees, because I am his Friend; and I am his friend, because I have long had abundant Reason to be convincd that he is a Friend to our Country. I have said I may be thought partial to him. Be pleasd then to take the Testimony of another, and show it to his Friends and his Enemies. "Your old friend, says one, is a Man of Honor and Integrity." "He has been of opinion that the publick Monies have been too freely issued here, & has often opposd it." Let me remark here that it is no Wonder he has exposd himself to the Resentment of a Man thro whose hands the Chief of the money passed. "Insinuations, I have been told, have been made at Court against your old friend that he was too friendly to the English, too much attachd to Ld Shelburne & even that he corresponded with his Lordship & communicated Intelligence to him. This, whoever suggested it, I am perfectly confident was a cruel Calumny. You and I have had opportunity to know his invariable Attachment to our Cause long before Hostilities commencd & I have not a Color of Ground for Suspicion that from that time to this he has deviated from the Cause of his Country in Thought Word or Deed."

You may tell the Friends of Virtue and Liberty, that the Letter from which the foregoing Extracts are taken was written to me by one in whom they have always very justly placed great Confidence. I could transcribe more Passages which mention Dr Lee as "a worthy Character," the unwarrantable Lengths to which the Animosities of interrested Men have been carried against him, & the Inveteracy of many Subaltern & collateral Characters but I think I have given enough to satisfy every reasonable Man.

Adieu.



TO MRS. ADAMS.

[MS., Samuel Adams Papers. Lenox Library.]

PHILADA Mar 23 1779

MY DEAR BETSY

In Answer to a part of yours of the 20th of Feb. which I overlookd, I will transcribe an Extract of a Letter which I wrote last December to the Council of Massachusetts State. You may show it to my Friends & inform that I am still determind to return to Boston in April or May—there to resign the place I hold as Secretary and to get my self excusd from any further Service here. No "Bribe" shall prevail on me to desert my Country. I will still exert my poor Abilities in her Service. But as I am satisfied that there are others who are much more capable of serving her in this Department than I am, I may be allowd to say, that after near five years absense from my Family, and in a Climate unfriendly to my Health. I have Reason to expect I may be permitted to spend the Remainder of my Days in my native Place and enjoy the Pleasures of domestick Life. There, I shall on all occasions contribute my Mite in promoting the Peace and Prosperity of my fellow Citizens. In their Service, I began my political Race. I have ever kept their Interest in View. It will never be in my Power to render them much more Service; but my best Wishes for them will be coequal with my Life.

I do not think my Countrymen are ungrateful; but I am affraid there is a Faction among them, consisting of a few Men, who are under the Dominion of those Passions which have been the Bane of Society in all Ages—Ambition and Avarice. I wish their Number may not increase. They are congenial Spirits with Hutchinson and those who aimd at grasping Wealth and Power. America, when she was wise, was jealous of such Designs. She opposd them though they were backd with the Wealth and Power of Great Britain. Such Kind of Men do me great Honor as they ever have done in being my Enemies. While such Men exist, and I believe they ever will in this World of Vanity, an honest Man would feel mortified indeed, to have it said that all Men spoke well of him. These Men hate, but I would not believe them if they were to say, they despisd the Man whose Integrity they cannot shake. They dread, but they cannot despise him of whom they entertain an opinion, that he is a virtuous Citizen.—I do not covet their Esteem. They are not among the Multitude of my Brethren, of whom I should count it an Honor to be accepted. The Eclat of the World is Vanity. There is a solid Satisfaction in ones having, and being conscious that he merits the good opinion of Men of true Discernment and real Worth. But to have a Name among the weak and the wicked is Shame and Reproach. Adieu my Dear. I hope to see you shortly, and then I will explain to you why I have written in this Strain.



TO JAMES WARREN.

[MS., Samuel Adams Papers, Lenox Library.]

PHILADE March 23 1779

MY DEAR SIR

I am to acknowledge the Receipt of your Favor of the 12th & 28th of Feby. The Letter you mention in the former came to hand, but I am apt to think it will have no Effect at all. There was an omission in the Navy Boards not having Notice officially of the inclosd Resolution of Congress, but I hope the Delay has not been attended with any material Inconvenience.

I do sincerely hope the General Assembly will appoint another Person to take my place here. I wrote a Letter to them last December, requesting that I might be relievd by one of my absent Colleagues or some other Gentleman, & permitted to return to my Family in the Spring. I find my Health declining, and the Air of this Country is unfriendly to it. I am therefore steadfastly determind to get my self excusd in April or May at farthest. In doing this, I shall immediately make Room for an abler Man. Such may easily be found, and, I hope, prevaild upon to come. I shall also gratify those whose Hearts are bent upon my Removal, and shall save them Abundance of Pains in making their Interest to effect it. These Men agree with me, if in Nothing else, in wishing most cordially for my Retirement from publick Business. Perhaps they would chuse to have me recalled with Disgrace. I hope this is not in their Power; though I think I could bear even that with becoming Fortitude, for I am conscious that I do not deserve to be disgracd by my Country, and can be happy in the Reflections of my own Mind. The Arts they make use of are contemptible. Last year, as you observe, I was an Enemy to General Washington. This was said, to render me odious to the People. The Man who fabricated the Charge did not believe it himself. When he endeavord to make others believe it, he attempted to injure me by imposing upon them. His own Heart must therefore reproach him with complicated Acts of Injustice, and if he has any Feeling he must despise himself. If I indulgd the Spirit of Revenge, could I wish for more? NOW, you tell me, their Art is, to prejudice the People against the Lees, and propagate that I am a Friend to them. HOW trifling is this? Am I accountable to the People for my opinions of Men? If I have found from long & intimate Acquaintance with those Gentlemen, that they are, and have been from the Beginning of this Contest, among the most able & zealous Defenders of the Rights of America and Mankind, shall I not be their Friend? I will avow my Friendship to them in the Face of the World. As an Inhabitant of Massachusetts Bay, I should think my self ungrateful, not to esteem Arthur Lee most highly, for his voluntary Services to that State, in Times of her greatest Necessity, to the Injury of his private Interest, and at the Risque of his Life.

Adieu my Friend.

March 24—79

The Bearer of this Letter being prevented setting off by a Storm, I have had Time to transcribe the inclosd Extracts. They were written to me, as you will observe, in Confidence. I think I am warranted in communicating them to you, because I know the Writer has as much Confidence in your Prudence & Discretion as in mine, if not more. And I do not see how I can better use them for the purpose he intended in sending them to me, than by sending them to you. The Parts which are descriptive of the Weakness, or if you think more proper, the reserved Caution of Age, you will judge prudent to keep secret for the present. There are some of our Friends, who, having so long habituated themselves to admire the Wisdom of the Philosopher cannot easily be perswaded to believe, that in the different Character of a Politician, he may be liable to human Frailties at the Age of more than three score and ten. Those Parts which may serve to set Dr Lee in his true Character of an honest & diligent Servant of the publick, you will make Use of for that Purpose. For it is of equal Importance that the Fidelity of one or the Treachery of another, in the service of the publick, should be made known. A Man of inflexible Republican Virtue cannot but incur both the Dread & the Hatred of those who are—ambitious—desirous of making Fortunes—artful and enterprizing—especially if much of the publick Money has passd, unaccounted for, through their Hands. Mr Dean would have the World believe that Dr Lee is a dishonest Man & a Traitor. The Writer of these Extracts, who has had full Opportunity of enquiring, says, he is "a Man of Integrity and Honor,"—"a worthy Character"—"invariably attachd to the Cause of America." I am inclind to think, that no honest & sensible Man who is acquainted with both will hesitate to determine, which of their Opinions to rely upon, or which of them in the present Case ought to be supposd the impartial Judge.

Adieu.



TO JAMES LOVELL.

[MS., Samuel Adams Papers, Lenox Library.]

March 26

Mess Otis and Henley are under a Difficulty which I wish mt have your Attention, and that you wd consult our Brother Mr Gerry to whom they have written on the Subject. In Consequence of the most pressing Letters from the Board of War, they have lately purchasd a Quantity of Woolen Goods at 5 Months Credit, to be paid for in Currency at 75 for one provided Bills on Europe continue at 25, otherwise is that Proportion. They consulted the most judicious and publick spirited Merchants upon Change who thought it an advantageous Bargain. But the Board of War in a Letter to them say they hope & expect they have got rid of the Bargain. To insist upon this would seem hard and unjust, and to leave the Matter to be settled at a distant Time would be precarious and unsafe for them. I hope Gentlemen with you do not look upon them as that Kind of Men who seek publick Employment without any View of serving the Publick. They are Men of Honor and Reputation; and as such they expect to fullfil the Contracts they make, and they ought to be supported by their Employers.

A Prize is arrivd in Salem taken by one of our Privateers, said to have on board 1500 bls of Flour, 1400 bls of Beef and Pork, besides dry Goods.

Mrs A made a Visit to Mrs L a day or two ago & informd me that your Family were in Health. They are shortly to move into the House of S Waterhouse an Absentee.



TO JAMES LOVELL.

[MS., Samuel Adams Papers, Lenox Library.]

Mar 27

The Gentn of the Medical Departmt have diverse Times applied to Congress for Consideration on Accot of the depreciating Currency. It appears to me that they are as much intitled to it, as the officers of the Line; for altho they may not run Risques in the fighting Way, they very probably do, equally, in the Midst of putrid Fevers &c. Those of them who are the Subjects of this State, have applied to the General Assembly; and tho ample Provision is made for officers & Soldiers, no Provision is made for them, because they are not considerd as Part of the Quota of this State. I wish you would take this Matter under your Consideration. This is the first Time I have ever interposd in behalf of that Department. I have hitherto refraind on Account of my Sons being one, whom I early cautiond not to expect any Advantage, as a Servant of the Publick from his Connection with me.



TO JAMES LOVELL.

[MS., Samuel Adams Papers, Lenox Library.]

March 30

Capt Paul Jones, it is supposd may be now in Philadelphia in Command of the Alliance. If Congress will recollect the Mannagemt of the Cutter Revenge commanded by Cunningham, which I imagine has not been cleard up to this Day & probably never will be, they will think it just to the Publick and necessary that Enquiry shd be made, while Jones is on the Spot, concerning the Squadron lately under his Command. Whether it was fitted out at the Expence of the Publick either french or american or joyntly by both. Or whether it was a Project of private Men so artfully contrivd & conducted as that they can declare the property to be either publick or private as may best suit their Interest. Landais is esteemd here a good Commander & an honest Man. But he is left in France & cannot inform you any thing about it. And whether the Character which Jones has given to all his officers (Landais only excepted) may operate as a Bribe, may be worth your particular Vigilance. The Reputation of our Navy, to say Nothing of the Honor of Congress which ought never to be suspected, will suffer, if our Seamen, after having venturd their Lives in cruizing upon the Enemy in Europe should return to America without receiving their Prize Money, & be told [here] that no one knows, whether the Vessels into which they inlisted were publick or private Property, tho they were taught to believe in Europe they were ownd & commissiond by the United States. If [our] Ministers or Agents abroad either with or without special Direction of Congress shall think it proper to employ our Ships of War (which has been the Case of the Alliance at least) in Expeditions or Services in Europe, ought they not to be directed, when the Service is performd, if it cannot be done conveniently before, to make known the Circumstances & Events to Congress? I am told that a Commodore Gillon has written a Letter to the late Mr President Jay concerning the attaching the American Ship of War Alliance to "an amphibious Squadron of french Cruizers, subjecting them to the Orders of Capt Paul Jones and giving Continental Commissions to a Number of french men, who were put upon Court Martials on American Citizens." And it is apprehended this Information will be withheld from Congress, because, tho intended to be laid before them, it was not expressly so desired. It is allowd that Jones has behavd with Bravery; but I think the Expedition with all its Circumstances should be the Subject of thorough & immediate Enquiry. Landais, I am informd is in Prison. He is an officer of Congress, and Congress should know, whether he is justly a....



TO THE PRESIDENT OF THE COUNCIL OF MASSACHUSETTS.

[MS., Samuel Adams Papers Lenox Library.]

PHILAD Apr 1 1779

SIR

We had the Honor of receiving by the Hands of N1 Gorham Esqr & others a Come of the General Court, your Letter of the 1st of March. Congress had before considerd the Subject of it and come in to Resolutions which we forwarded to you in Season. If any thing further can be done for the Reliefe of the Inhabitants of Massachusetts Bay from the Distress they are under for Want of Bread, the Honble Assembly may rely upon our utmost Exertions. We have also recd another Letter by Express, inclosing a Resolution of the Assembly relating to the Necessity of ascertaining the Powers of foreign Consuls in the American Ports. This we immediately laid before Congress & the Matter is under the Consideration of a Committee.

A Resolution yesterday passd, which directs that the proceedings of Congress from the first of Jany last, excepting such as require Secrecy for the present, be publishd with all Dispatch and transmitted weekly to the Assemblys of the respective States. This will enable us to comply with a former Instruction with Ease. The printing of the Journals preceding the Time just mentiond, will not be interrupted by the execution of this Resolution.

We are with Sentiments of Duty & Regard to the Gen1 Assembly

Sir

your most hbl Servts 2

1 Nathaniel Gorham, of Lunenburgh, Mass. On February 27 the House of Representatives appropriated L500 each to Gorham and Ebenezer Wells for their expenses while visiting the southern states as a committee of the House.

2 Signed by Adams, Gerry, Lovell and Holten, delegates of Massachusetts in the Continental Congress.



TO JOHN PITTS.

[MS., Samuel Adams Papers, Lenox Library.]

PHILAD April 27-79

MY DEAR SIR

I have recd several of your favors which I have not yet answerd. You will not I am sure, impute it to Inattention or Neglect. I have been often sick. I have been fatigud with Business, whereby I am become greatly indebted to all my Friends in the Epistolary Way. Shortly I hope to see them when I shall make a satisfactory Apology. Upon what Foundation do they build their Hopes of Peace? Congress, they say, have receivd great News. No such thing. There is Nothing I know of worth your hearing which you have not already heard. Be not amusd by the Tales of interrested Politicians, Speculators & Tories. A false Hope of peace in the Time of War does a World of Mischiefe. The latest & best Advices I have seen mention Britain as breathing Nothing but Revenge. Besides, were we to expect serious Overtures, did a wise Nation ever remit; their Exertions at such a Juncture? I hope America will persevere in this glorious Struggle till she obtains what in Reason she ought to insist upon This you will tell me is saying just Nothing at all Very true; and why should one speak when it is the Time to be silent? At a proper time when I shall have the pleasure of seeing you, I will chat with you upon the Subject. Let me only ask you at present, Is not the Fishery as valueable to America & more so to old Massachusetts than the Tobacco Fields of the middle States or the Rice Swamps of the South?

Ask my old Fd the Hon T C1 what he thinks of the pious Lord Dartmouth now. Adieu.



TO SAMUEL COOPER.

[MS., Samuel Adams Papers, Lenox Library.]

PHILADE April 29, 1779

MY DEAR FRIEND

I have not yet acknowledgd your Favors of the 14th & 15th of March. The Subject of the former is of the last Importance. I have always been of Opinion that America would be in more Danger in the Point of coming to an Accommodation with Great Britain than in any Stage of the War. Unpracticd as we are in the Business of Treaties and perhaps too unsuspecting of the Intrigues of Courts, we may be led into Conventions which may put us into a State of Insecurity while we are nominally independent. The Advice which some Persons would affect to give us not to insist upon too much, should be receivd with the greatest Caution. What do they mean by it, and how far wd they have us extend it? If we had hearkned to such Advice in the Infancy of this Contest, we should have submitted [to] Britain the Right of taxing us, & humbly supplicated her to suspend the Exercise of it. In doing this we might have prevented the Horrors of War, & have been her quiet Slaves. No Terms have yet been proposd by Britain. She possibly may offer them soon, and her proposals possibly may be insidious & inadmissible. I do believe she is at this Moment employing her secret Emissaries to find out the Disposition of America & what would be her Ultimatum. Should not the People then speak the Language which becomes them & assure her that after so virtuous & successful a Struggle they are determind to demand enough for the Purpose of securing their own internal & external Happiness. This is the Aim of the Revolution and the Extent of the Wishes of our good & great Ally, who I dare affirm, is invariably determind not to seperate his Interest from that of America, & to support the Cause of the United States as his own. Our Happiness depends upon Independence. To be prosperous we must have an extensive Trade. This will require a respectable Navy. Our Ships must be mannd, and the Source of Seamen is the Fishery. Among those who ought to see the Importance of the Fishery, I am affraid there are some who think that in insisting upon that we should insist upon too much. Nova Scotia & Canada would be a great & permanent Protection to the Fishery. But these, say some, are not Parts of the United States, and what Right should we have to claim them? The Cession of those Territories would prevent any Views of Britain to disturb our Peace in future & cut off a Source of corrupt British Influence which issuing from them, might diffuse Mischiefe and Poison thro the States. Will not then the Possession of Nova Scotia & Canada be necessary, if we mean to make Peace upon pacifick Principles? If we are to have no overtures this year, and Providence blesses us with the Spirit of Enterprize would it not be better for us, provided it be practicable, to wrest those Places from the Hands of the Enemy than trust to the Uncertainty of Treaty? I confess we have a Choice of Difficulties. I pray God we may surmount them all! None however reach the Pinnacle of Eminence & Glory but the virtuous & brave. Adieu my dear Sir. I hope to see & live with you shortly; but I shall expect another Letter from you before I leave this Place.

1 Thomas Cushing.



THE MARINE COMMITTEE OF THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS TO GEORGE WASHINGTON.

[MS., Letter Book of the Marine Committee, Library of Congress; a draft is in the Samuel Adams Papers, Lenox Library.]

May 26th 1779

SIR

Your Excellencys Letter to this committee of the 25th instant together with an Extract from another of the 17th instant to the President of Congress has been duely considered by the Committee.

Unfortunately the situation of our frigates is such as to afford no reason to expect that they can possibly be collected in season to execute the plan proposed. The Providence of 32 Guns and the Ranger of 18 are already ordered on a Cruize and it is supposed must be at Sea before different orders can reach them at Boston.

The Warren of 36 Guns and the Queen of France of 20 have lately returned from a Cruize and are unmanned. Although the Naval force of the enemy at New York is at present trifleing, yet as their situation in this respect is very fluctuateing they may probably be so reinforced as to render it too hazardous to risque only the Two frigates in this River viz: the Confederacy of 36 Guns & the Deane of 28 Guns the latter of which wants a great number of hands to make up her complement.

Add to this that though the force of the enemy on the water would be inferior to ours, yet might they not retire under cover of the Batteries on shore and receive effectual protection from any annoyance that could be attempted from the Guns of our small Ships. I am desired by the Committee to assure you Sir that they shall always be ready with the greatest alacrity to employ our little fleet in the execution of such plans as may be suggested to them by your Excellency when our circumstances shall be such as to render it practicable.

I am yr Excellencys

Obet Servt 1

1 Signed, "S. Adams, Chn."



TO BENJAMIN HAWES.

[MS., Massachusetts Archives.]

STATE OF MASS. BAY.

COUNCIL CHAMBER. July 10th 1779

SIR

The Council being informd that a Detachment of Troops destind for the Defence of the State of Rhode Island are waiting at or near the Town of Wrentham ready to march you are directed to forward them and all others in the like Circumstances within the Limits of your regt to the Place of their Destination with all possible Dispatch.



TO THE NAVY BOARD AT BOSTON.

[MS., Massachusetts Archives.]

STATE OF M B. COUNCIL CHAMBER

July 12 1779

To the Honble the Commissioners of the Continental Navy Board

GENTLEMEN

The Council Board having given orders that the Ships in the Service of this State and employed in the present Expedition to Penobscott proceed to Sea upon the Signal given from the Continental Frigate Warren, you are requested to give order to the Commander of the Frigate & other Ships under your Direction to proceed to place of Rendevous already agreed on.

In the Name & Behalf of the Council.1

1 Wholly in the autograph of Adams; the original was signed by Jeremiah Powell, President of the Council, as in the case of letters printed on pages 153-155, 158, 160, 161, 162.



TO JONATHAN TRUMBULL.

[MS., Massachusetts Archives; a portion of the text is in W. V. Wells, Life of Samuel Adams, vol. iii., p. 70.]

STATE OF MASS BAY COUNCIL CHAMBER July 13 1779

SIR

Your Excellencies Letter of the 11th Current was duly receivd & read in Council; in Consequence of which, orders are issued to the Brigadiers of the Counties of Hampshire & Berkshire to detach and forward on under proper officers with all possible Dispatch a Number consisting of one sixth part of their Militia to such place in Connecticutt as your Excy shall appoint & to continue in Service for the Defence of the State of Connecticutt during the space of one Month after their Arrival at the place appointed unless they shall be sooner dischargd. It is presumd that the Aid of one thousand Men at least will be afforded by means of this order. The Council very sensibly feel the Distress which the State of Connecticutt have already sufferd by the Incursions & Depredations of a desperate & malicious Enemy, and trust in God that the People of New England will be always spirited to exert themselves upon every pressing occasion for the Common Safety & that their Exertions will be attended with the divine Blessing.



TO HORATIO GATES.

[MS., Massachusetts Archives; a portion of the text is in W. V. Wells, Life of Samuel Adams, vol. iii., pp, 70, 71.]

STATE OF MASS BAY COUNCIL CHAMBER July 14 1779

SIR

Your Letter of the 12th Instant with its Inclosure has been receivd by the Council. The Progress of the Enemy into the State of Connecticutt, and the Devastations they have already made in some of the Towns there, require our vigorous Exertions. Orders have been given to forward the Troops destind for the Defence of Rhode Island with all possible Dispatch. And the Commanding officers of the Counties of Hampshire and Berkshire are also directed to detach a Number from their Militia & march them forthwith for the Reliefe of Connecticut!, to such place as Govr Trumbull shall appoint, of which due Notice is forwarded to the Governor. Should the Enemy, direct their force to Connecticutt or any part of New Engd & attempt to make that the Seat of the War, this Summer, Nothing shall be wanting on the part of this Board, to defeat their Designs.

In the Name & behalf of the Council I am——

Sir your most obedient

humble Servt



TO THE NAVY BOARD AT BOSTON.

[MS., Massachusetts Archives.]

STATE OF MASSACHUSETTS BAY COUNCIL CHAMBER July 14, 1779

To the Hon the Commissioners of the Continental Navy Board

GENTLEMEN

This Board being duly informd by the Board of War that the Ships & Vessels in Service of this State on the Expedition to Penobscot are ready to proceed to Sea upon the proper Signals being given from the Frigate Warren, you are requested to give the necessary order to Captain Salstonstal as soon as may be.

In the Name & Behalf of the Council

I am &c

TO MESHECH WEARE.1

[MS., Massachusetts Archives.]

STATE OF MASSACHUSETTS BAY COUNCIL CHAMBER July 28—1779

SIR

It having been suggested to this Board that a Vessel belonging to the subjects of his Catholick Majesty has been plunderd on the high Seas by the Captain of a Vessel from Liverpole, suspected to be Capt George Hewet of the Prize Brig Adventure lately brot into this Port—And the Board being informd that Cap Evans of Portsmouth & his Mate who arrivd here a few days ago & are since gone to that town can give Information touching the same— It is the Request of this Board that the Honorable the Council of New Hampshire will be pleasd to cause a strict Examination to be made into a Report which is of great Importance to the United States, as the aforesaid Act of Pyracy is said to have been committed under American Colours.

I am

in the name &c



TO ARTHUR LEE.

[R. H. Lee, Life of Arthur Lee, vol. ii., pp. 226-228, under date of August 1, 1777.]

BOSTON, Aug. 1st, 1779.

It was not till the last week that I received your favour from Nantes of the 6th of March. Our friend Mr. Lovett sent it to me from Philadelphia. I resent the treatment you have met with in America with all the feelings of friendship. Among your enemies you may depend upon it there are some of the worst kind of men. I cannot help entertaining a violent suspicion that they are the enemies of their country. I am sure that they cannot at present do a more vital injury to the great cause of America than by raising the popular jealousy and clamour against its earliest, most able, and persevering friends. This they are endeavouring to do not only with regard to you but others; and they are masters of so much sophistry as to deceive some who, as I think, are not so wary and suspicious of them as they ought to be. Mr. ———— in the opinion of some of his own party, was injudicious in his publication of the 5th Dec. last. They are at least constrained to say it, whether they think so or not. It is the opinion of the best men, I know, that he has done more mischief than it will ever be in his power to atone for. I never had but one opinion of this man since the year 1774, when I first knew him, and that is, that he is commercial and interested. I believe he has for a twelvemonth past, thought it his interest to throw us into divisions and parties, and that he has been as influential in effecting it as any man in America. Interested men, men who are united in politics and commercial combinations are and must be his advocates. Perhaps the persons whose names you mention in the last part of your letter, may be his secret but powerful supporters; I do not pretend to affirm it. These men most certainly, should preserve their minds free from prejudice in disputes of this kind. They should stand totally unconnected with any party, as they would avoid doing injury to the joint cause of France and America, and lessening that strong attachment and mutual confidence between the two nations, which every true friend and subject of both wishes may long subsist.

Your letter to the editor of the Leyden Gazette, written upon your seeing Mr.....'s first publication, fell into my hands a fortnight ago. I published it with a few loose observations in one of our newspapers. I have since had the pleasure of being informed, that you have sent to congress a reply to Deane's accusations, which has given great satisfaction to impartial men. I foresaw soon after his arrival, that your lot would be to suffer persecution for a while. This is frequently the portion of good men, but they are never substantially injured by it. Our friend and your late colleague, in his letter to me, has mentioned you in the most honourable as well as the most friendly terms. I should have written to him by this opportunity, but I am led by yours to believe that my letter would not reach him. But if he should be in France when you receive this letter, pray mention my friendly regards to him, and let him know that his lady and family are in health.

The young gentleman who carries this letter is Mr. William Knox, brother to the general, and has the character of an honest friend to the liberties of his country; your kind notice of him as such will oblige me.

I have many things to say to you; but the short notice I have had of the sailing of this packet, leaves me no time to add more than to assure you that I am, with perfect sentiments of friendship, yours, &c.

1 President of the Council of New Hampshire.



TO SOLOMON LOVELL.1

[MS., Massachusetts Archives.]

August 6th 1779

SIR/

The Council not having receivd any Intelligence of the State of the Army under your Command since your Departure from Boston, are apprehensive that it must have been unluckily intercepted. They have therefore orderd the Dispatch of an Express to you for the Purpose of being informd from you with the utmost precision of your Scituation & Circumstances, the Information to be forwarded to this Board without Delay.

There is no News of the Movements of the Enemy that may be depended upon. You are fully sensible of the Necessity of compleating the Design of this Expedition with all that Speed as well as prudence & Discretion which characterizes you as an officer vested with so important a Command.

1 Brigadier General of the Suffolk County militia.



TO THE PRESIDENT OF THE COUNCIL OF MASSACHUSETTS.

[MS., Massachusetts Archives; a text, with modifications, is in W. V. Wells, Life of Samuel Adams, vol. iii., p. 73.]

PROVIDENCE Augt 10th 1779

SIR

I have the Pleasure to acquaint the Honble the Council Board, that I arrivd here last Evening, and, upon communicating their Request to Major General Gates, I found him ready, as usual, to afford every Assistance in his Power, for the Service of the great Cause. He has orderd Colo Jackson with a Detachment from his Regiment consisting of four hundred Men, to joyn General Level at Penobscot. This Core, I have Reason to believe, both Officers and Privates, will do honor to themselves & their Country, when an Opportunity shall present. I had the Satisfaction of seeing them on their March this Morning at Sun rise, and the Council may expect them in the Neighborhood of Boston tomorrow Evening. In the mean time, I hope that Transports and every Accommodation will be prepared for them that their Passage to the Place of their Destination may not be delayd. I shall immediately forward to Brigadier General Godfrey the order of the Honble Board, for the detaching four hundred Militia to serve in Providence in the Room of these Troops, and remain with all Regard,

Sir your most obedient

hble Servant,



TO THE PRESIDENT OF THE COUNCIL OF MASSACHUSETTS.

[MS., Massachusetts Archives; a text, with modifications, is in W. V. Wells, Life of Samuel Adams, vol. iii., p. 73.]

PROVIDENCE 11 Aug. 1779

SIR

General Gates writes to the Council by this Express. Colo Jackson's Regiment will have arrivd at Boston before this Letter reaches you. I presume they will sail under the strongest Convoy that can be made up. Should they meet with a superior force of the Enemy at Sea, I conceive it ought to be a point settled & indispensible that the Commanders of the Armed Vessells run the utmost Risque to give the Troops an Opportunity of making their Escape. I wrote yesterday to Gen1 Godfrey & this morng receivd his Answer with Assurance of punctual Obedience to the orders of Council.

With Sentiments of Esteem & Respect I am

your most hbl Servt



TO SOLOMON LOVELL.1

[MS., Massachusetts Archives.]

Augt 14th 1779

SIR

The Council have now to acquaint you that Colo Jackson's Regiment will at all events embark this Day & the Transports will sail without Delay. This Regiment we trust, under God, will be a sufficient Reinforcement to you; and from the Ardor of your Troops, as well as from your own Bravery, Activity, Prudence & Zeal for the great Cause, we have Reason to expect speedily to hear that the Designs of the Enemy at Penobscot are defeated & their Army captivated.

In the Name of the Council

I am &c

P.S. Upon the Reception of this Letter you will immediately send your orders to Townsend where the Transports are to stop unless Colo Jackson shall meet your Directions at Sea.

1 Endorsed as "forwarded by Majr Braddish to Messrs Saml or Enoch Freeman at Falmo. Duplicate by Spy Boat."



TO JOHN FROST.1

[MS., Massachusetts Archives.]

STATE OF MASSACHUSETTS BAY COUNCIL CHAMBER Augt 17 1779

SIR

The Council have receivd your Letter dated the 16th. It is the opinion of the Board that it would have been prudent in you to have acquainted Brigr General Lovel with the Circumstances of the remaining Part of the Men detachd from your Brigade for the Expedition to Penobscot; and it is the Direction of the Board that you immediately on the Receipt of this Letter dispatch an Express to the General informing him of the Number of Men now ready, agreable to the Representation you have made in your Letter, and requesting him, if he shall think it necessary and proper, to forward a Vessel from Penobscot with a suitable Convoy to transport them.

1 Brigadier General of the York County militia.



TO .

[MS., Samuel Adams Papers, Lenox Library.]

BOSTON Aug. 17, 1779

MY DEAR SIR

I did not write by the last Post, because I was at Providence upon Business with General Gates. He, with his usual Readiness to serve the Common Cause, has spared Colo Jacksons Regt to joyn our Forces at Penobscot. They were marchd to this place with the greatest Dispatch & have sailed with a fair Wind, under Convoy of two Vessels of Force. It needs not to be mentiond to you, how necessary it is to remove the Enemy from their Lodgment there. I cannot but hope the Business is by this Time effected; but should any untoward Accident happen, a Regiment of regular Troops will support our Militia, and animate that Part of the Country. Our last Accounts from General Lovel were of the 6th Instant. There was then no unpromising Circumstance, but the Want of a few disciplind Soldiers. We had a Letter from Mr Freeman of Falmouth, dated I think the 12th, by which we were informd that one Pote, a fisherman... While I am writing, an Express arrives from Penobscot with Letters of the 13th—a Reinforcement to the Enemy consisting of 1 Ship of 64 Guns 3 Frigates...



TO HENRY JACKSON.1

[MS., Massachusetts Archives.]

STATE OF MASS. BAY COUNCIL CHAMBER BOSTON Augt 21 1779

SIR

This Board have recd your Letter dated the 19th at Portsmouth and are happy in your safe Arrival there with the whole Fleet under your Command. They approve of your Resolution to march to Falmouth, and make no doubt but upon your Application to the People of Portsmouth, or as it appears to the Council most effectual, to the Selectmen of the Towns Eastward of Portsmouth, you will be amply provided with Waggons &c for the Transportation of your Baggage Provisions & military Stores. By the time of your Arrival at Falmouth, you will probably receive Directions for your further Conduct from Brigr Gen1 Lovel who is authorizd, if he shall judge it necessary, to call in the Militia of the Counties of York Cumberland & Lincoln. It is expected that so spirited, experiencd and well Disciplind a Regiment as yours is, will add Vigor to the Inhabitants of that Part of the State, upon whose Attachment to the Cause of their Country great Dependence is to be had. A single Disappointment though attended with LOSS should by no means be a Discouragement to us. It is hoped that a respectable Body of the Militia will be again collected, at such place as Gen1 Lovel if necessary shall think most convenient, and that by the Smiles of Heaven our Enemies in that Quarter will yet be subdued. We pray God to protect & prosper you.

1 Colonel of militia. This letter was addressed to Jackson at Portsmouth.

TO HORATIO GATES.

[MS., Samuel Adams Papers, Lenox Library.]

BOSTON Augt 22d 1779

MY DEAR SIR

Yesterday I recd your favor of Fryday last by Express. By the Councils Letter which you must have receivd, you will see that Events untoward have taken place at Penobscot. Our Troops were dispersd, and I fear our Ships are burnt. Better so, however, than to fall into the Enemies Hands. We could not command Success, but we have endeavord to deserve it. Disappointments are to be expected in so arduous a Conflict, and when they come fairly one can bear them with Patience & Fortitude; but when they happen through Misconduct, they are vexatious. I suspect there has been bad Mannagement, but I will not make up my Judgment till I am fully informd. The Moment an authentick & explicit Account arrives, you shall have it from me. I will not yet despair of Success. Witness Tyconderoga & Saratoga. An Instance which you and our Country will never forget. We have directed & authorizd Gen1 Lovel to call in the Militia & have sent him a Proclamation to disperse thro the Eastern Counties. Who knows but Laurels are yet ordaind for Level & Jackson. He arrivd on fryday last with the whole Fleet under his Command at Portsmouth, and is to march through a good Road to Falmouth where he will probably receive Lovels orders. The Selectmen & Committees of the Towns are directed to provide him with Waggons to transport his Baggage Provisions & military Stores. I flatter myself we shall yet subdue the Enemy at Penobscot. To alleviate our Misfortunes, some Ships taken from the Jamaica Fleet by the Providence Queen of France & Ranger are arrivd at this Harbor which added to one arrivd here a few Days ago & another at Cape Ann makes six out of ten which we know are taken. The Contents of all are fifteen or sixteen hundred hhds of Sugar, twelve hundred hhds of Rum, Piemento, Ginger, Fish &c. The richest of the Cargos are arrivd. We are told of a Vessel at Salem in thirty Days from Cadiz & Bilboa, which brings an Account of the Declaration of War in Spain against Britain. This corresponds with Accounts just recd from Havanna. I believe they are true.

The Chevalier de la Luzerne has honord me with several private confidential Conversations, in which I have communicated to him my Sentiments with Freedom and Candor. I have conceivd an high opinion of him and of M. Marbois, who is a Member of the Parliament of Meitz. I want him to see you & Governor Trumbull. The Chevalier has not yet determind what Route to take. Should he go thro Springfield I wish to know whether you could furnish him with an Escort to General Washingtons Head Quarters. Your Answer to this speedily will oblige me.—God bless you my dear Friend. Believe me to be sincerely yours——



TO GEORGE WASHINGTON.

[MS., Massachusetts Archives; the text, dated November 12, 1779, is in W.V. Wells, Life of Samuel Adams, vol. iii., pp. 71, 72.]

STATE OF MASS BAY IN COUNCIL Octr 12 1779

SIR

Your Excellencys Letter of the 4th of October to the Council of this State was duly receivd, and immediately laid before the General Assembly which fortunately happend to be then sitting. The Assembly have chearfully complid with your Requisition and accordingly orderd two thousand Men to be raisd with all possible Dispatch for the Purpose mentiond. The Council have appointed Brigr General Fellows to take the Command. Inclosd is Copy of the Resolution of the General Assembly. Wishing that Success may ever attend the Arms of the United States & their Ally, I am in the Name & Behalf of the Council

yr Excellencys

most obedient

& humble Servant



TO THE NAVY BOARD AT BOSTON.

[MS., Samuel Adams Papers, Lenox Library.]

BOSTON Oct 19, 1779

GENTLEMEN

Such are my Apprehensions of great Numbers of the Inhabitants of this Town perishing in the ensuing Winter for Want of Fuel unless Measures are taken to guard the Wood Coasters from the Eastward, that I cannot satisfy myself without once more applying to you and most earnestly requesting that the Queen of France may be employd a short time in that Service. I have venturd to promise the People the Service of that Ship upon the Assurance given to me by your Honbl Board. I beg you would not think my Design is to be troublesome to you, but you will excuse me in pressing a Matter in which I think I am justified, by the Rules of Justice, & Mercy to a Community whose Constancy & Firmness as well as Sufferings in the great Cause entitle them to the Protection of the Continental Navy.

I am with every Sentiment of Regard

Gentn yr very hbl Servt



TO ELBRIDGE GERRY AND JAMES LOVELL.

[MS., Samuel Adams Papers, Lenox Library.]

Decr — 1779

GENTLEMEN

Mr Woodbury Langdon1 did me the Honor of a Visit this Morning and deliverd to me your Letter of the 19th of November directed to Mr Hancock and myself.

I cannot but feel the Sentiments of Gratitude to the Gentleman who has originated a Subscription for the Support of the Children of our very worthy deceasd Friend. I had been informd of it before; having lately seen a Letter on the Subject, in which the Name of Congress is mentiond in Terms more than "inadvertent." I am much displeasd, when I find the tender Feelings of Humanity & Benevolence towards these helpless Orphans accompanied with the Passion of Anger, and Resentment (probably misplacd) towards that Body, which their "brave Father," if living, would not fail to honor & revere. I should be very sorry, that the "various Causes" in one Paper, should be explaind by the harsh Expressions of "Ingratitude that is unparralled [sic]," in another. I have never heard that Application has been made to the Assembly of Massachusetts Bay in Behalf of these Children; and if there had been, I am at a LOSS to conceive, from what good or generous Motives it was introducd into a Paper when the very Use of it must tend to expose & exclude them from the Character of "patriotick humane & generous." Nor can I readily think of a Reason, why the Monies to be collected, should not be paid into the Hands of one of the Massachusetts Delegates, since it would not then have conveyd the Idea in a strong Light, that those who had been formerly among the most intimate Acquaintance and affectionate Friends of their "illustrious Ancestors," were totally regardless of "what they owe to his deserted youth."

I will communicate your Letter to Mr Hancock and consult him thereon. In the mean Time be assured that I am sincerely

Your Friend,

1 Member of Congress from New Hampshire.



TO ELBRIDGE GERRY.

[J. T. Austin, Life of Elbridge Gerry, vol. i., pp. 310, 311.]

BOSTON, Dec. 20, 1779.

MY DEAR SIR,

Last Saturday the two houses of assembly of this state made choice of yourself and Mr. Osgood to represent them in the convention recommended by the joint committees of the five eastern states to be held at Philadelphia. As it was a doubt in the minds of some of the members, whether so many of the other states would send their agents as to make a convention, it was thought prudent to leave it to the gentlemen who represent this state in congress, to agree upon any two of their number for that service. But it was overruled for several reasons; one was, that it was necessary to send one gentleman at least, immediately from hence, because it was supposed such an one must be better acquainted with particular circumstances in this state, necessary to be made known to that assembly, and which are perpetually varying, than any gentleman could be who has been absent for any length of time. Some gentlemen were 10th you should be taken off a moment from your important services in congress, but all were desirous of your assistance in the convention, in case it shall meet. Mr. Osgood will set off with all possible speed.

I am with truth and sincerity,

Your affectionate friend,

TO ELBRIDGE GERRY AND JAMES LOVELL.

[MS., Samuel Adams Papers, Lenox Library.]

BOSTON Decr 20th 1779

GENTLEMEN/

Since my last Letter to you, I have had an Opportunity of conversing with Doctor John Warren,1 Brother of our deceasd Friend, concerning the Scituation of his Children. He tells me that the eldest Son was, as early as it could be done, put under the Care and Tuition of the Revd Mr Payson of Chelsea; a Gentleman whose Qualifications for the instructing of Youth, I need not mention to you. The Lad still remains with him. The eldest Daughter, a Miss of about thirteen, is with the Doctor; and he assures me, that no Gentlemans Dauter in this Town has more of the Advantage of Schools than she has at his Expence. She learns Musick, Dancing, writing & Arithmetick, and the best Needle Work that is taught here. The Doctor, I dare say, takes good Care of her Morals. The two younger Children, a Boy of about seven years, and a Girl somewhat older, are in the Family of John Scollay Esqr, under the particular Care of his Daughter at her most earnest Request; otherwise, I suppose, they would have been taken Care of by their Relations at Roxbury, and educated as reputable Farmers Children usually are. Miss Scollay deserves the greatest Praise for her Attention to them. She is exceedingly well qualified for her Charge; and her Affection for their deceas'd Father prompts her to exert her utmost to inculcate in the Minds of these Children, those Principles which may conduce, "to render them worthy of the Relation they stood in" to him. General Arnold has assisted, by generously ordering five hundred Dollars towards their Support. This I was informd of when I was last in Philadelphia. I called on him & thank'd him for his Kindness to them. Whether he has done more for them since, I cannot say. Probably he originated the Subscription2 you have mentiond to me. I have omitted to tell you, that two years ago I was in this Town and made a visit to the present General Warren at Plymouth. His Lady was very sollicitous that the eldest Daughter should spend that Winter with her, and desired me to propose it to Miss. I did so; but I could not prevail upon her. She said, that Mrs Miller (Mr Charles Millers Lady) at whose House she then was, did not incline to part with her, and that it would be a Breach of good Manners, and ungrateful for her to leave Mrs Miller against her Inclination. She very prettily expressd her Obligations to both those Ladies, and thus prevented my saying any more. I am very certain it was Mrs Warrens Intention to give her Board and Education. You know the distinguishd Accomplishments of that Lady. I think it does not appear that Betsy has been altogether friendless and "deserted"; or that the others are in danger of "suffering irreparably on Account of their Education." Yet as I am very desirous that they should have the greatest Advantage in their Growth into Life, I shall, among other Friends, think my self much obligd to any Gentleman who, from pure and unmixd Motives, shall add to those which they now enjoy.

I have not yet had the Honor of an Interview with Mr Hancock, since I sent him the Letter which you wrote to us joyntly, and requested his Sentiments thereon. Adieu, my dear Friends, and believe me to be respectfully

Yours,

1 Numerous bills of John Warren against the United States, for the expenses of the education of Joseph Warren, are in the Massachusetts Archives.

2 The text of this subscription, from an autograph copy by Adams in the Lenox Library, is printed below, pages 171-173.



COPY OF A SUBSCRIPTION PROPOSD FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE CHILDREN OF THE LATE MAJOR GENERAL WARREN—DATED AT PHILADELPHIA; & INCLOSD IN A LETTER FROM E. GERRY & JAMES LOVELL TO JOHN HANCOCK & SAMUEL ADAMS.

The Honble Major General Warren who after de voting his Time & Talents for many years to his Country, gloriously fell in defending her Rights & Liberties, in the well fought Battle of Bunkers Hill, left four Orphan Children—Minors, two Sons and two Daughters—who from his Attention to the great & common Cause of these States, were left unprovided for and who on his Death found themselves without Parents, or the Means of Support.

The Honble Congress has resolvd to be at the Expence of the Education of the Elder Son; the other Son and two Daughters remain to this Time without other Assistance than what some generous & charitable Persons have afforded them. Application has been made to the Assembly of the Massachusetts Bay & in September last to Congress on the Subject; but the Multiplicity of Business or other Causes have hitherto prevented their obtaining any Grant in their Favor—in the mean time the Children of this patriotick Hero are suffering greatly on Account of their Education, and unless speedily relievd must suffer irreparably. Nothing more need be said on a Subject which every patriotick as well as humane and generous American must feel sensibly, on recollecting the Character and Death of their brave Father, to induce them to their Reliefe, & thereby to discharge some Part of what they owe the brave Father of these deserted youth.

Whatever Sums may be subscribd, will be receivd by the Honble the President of the Council of the State of Massachusetts Bay in Boston, & under their Direction will be applied to the Support and Education of these Children, in such a Manner as is becoming their Birth, and as will tend to render them great and good Citizens, & worthy of the Relation they stand in, to their illustrious Ancestor.

PHILADELPHIA Novr 1st 1779

We the Subscribers engage to pay the Sums affixd to our Names to the Honble William Paca Esqr l, to be transmitted to the President & Council aforesaid. Witness our Hands.

1 Member of Congress from Maryland.



TO THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF MASSACHUSETTS.

[MS., Massachusetts Archives.]

STATE OF MASSACHUSETTS BAY IN COUNCIL Decr 23d 1779

[Ordered that Genl Ward

Mr Thos Cushing

Mr Adams

Mr Fisher Esqr

Mr Pitts be

a Comtee to wait upon the Hone House of Representatives with the following message]1

The Council Board have taken your Message of this Day in due Consideration. It is important; nor out of Season. It is most certainly incumbent on those who have accepted of Places of the highest Trust, to attend constantly to the Duties of their Stations. This is the just Expectation of the Publick & ought never to be dispensed with. The Board have been so sensible of the obligations they owe to their Country in this Regard, that they have frequently orderd a Call of their Members when it became necessary and previous to your Message they directed the Attendance of those who are now absent. If the Publick suffers Injury from a Want of Application to its pressing Affairs, in any others;—Members of the General Assembly, it is hoped the joynt authority of both Houses will be employd effectually to prevent it.

1 The portion here bracketed is not in the autograph of Adams.



1780



TO THE GOVERNOR OF RHODE ISLAND AND PROVIDENCE PLANTATIONS.

[MS., Samuel Adams Papers, Lenox Library; a text is in Massachusetts Archives, and also in W. V. Wells, Life of Samuel Adams, vol. iii., pp. 98, 99]

STATE OF MASSACHUSETTS BAY Jany 5th 1780

SIR

The General Assembly of this State, conceiving that great Evil may arise to the United States, from permitting Persons inimical to our Common Cause, to reside within them; And having Reason to apprehend, that certain Persons who by an Act of Government have been excluded from this State, are meditating a Design to obtain a Residence in the State of Rhode Island, have thought it necessary to address you on the Subject, and to request that you would be pleasd to communicate their Sentiments to your General Assembly.

It is, in the Opinion of this Assembly, highly criminal for a Citizen to be an indifferent Spectator of the Miseries of his Country — much more so, to desert her while struggling for her Liberty — and still more, to seek Refuge in the very Time of her Conflict in the Arms of her cruel & inveterate Enemies. It cannot then be thought strange, that those who love and reverence their Country, feel an Indignation against the Men, who have held her Safety, her Liberty & her Honor at so cheap a Rate.

The Injury which this State unavoidably sustaind from the Arts of too many internal Enemies, hath been a sufficient Caution against receiving into her own Bosom, those who have withdrawn their Persons and their Aid in the Time of Danger & Distress; & there is less Reason for others to expect Favor and Forgiveness, who having basely betrayed such a Diffidence in the Wisdom and Fortitude of their Country and the righteous Cause she is contending for, have imagind themselves more secure, under the Power of its Invaders, and fled to them for Protection.

It is indeed much to be regretted, that the greatest Vigilance is insufficient to detect the most virulent Enemies of the publick Liberty in every Instance, and bring them to condign Punishment. This Government, however, hath taken every Measure which Prudence dictated, to effect so necessary a Purpose. Notorious offenders have been proscribed by the Laws, and forbidden to return from their voluntary and shameful Exile. Mutual Interest as well as mutual Friendship most strongly remonstrate against such Persons being permitted to reside within any of the Sister States. While we are embarkd in the same Cause; While we are actuated by the same Principles and Views; While we partake of the same publick Feeling, and are confederated for the same great Purpose of mutual Safety and Defence; Honor and Justice forbid us to entertain a Suspicion, that the State of Rhode Island would afford Shelter & Protection to those, who have forfeited the Rights of Citizens in the United States.

In the Name & Behalf of the General Assembly

I am &c,



TO JOHN ADAMS.

[MS., Samuel Adams Papers, Lenox Library.]

BOSTON Jany 13, 1780.

MY DEAR SIR

I gladly embrace the first opportunity I have had of writing to you since you left this Country. Mr Jonn Loring Austin is the Bearer of this Letter. He is appointed by the General Assembly to negociate an Affair in Europe which will be communicated to you by a Letter written to you by the President of the Council & signd in their Name. The Measure is the favorite offspring of the House of Representatives, & was adopted by many Members of the Council. I wish it may succeed to their Expectation.