think best calculated to give them all the advantage that can result from his Majesty's interposition. Your Secretary further reports that the Chargé d'Affaires at the Court of Spain should be instructed as follows, viz: It is the pleasure of Congress that you present their thanks to his Catholic Majesty for the very friendly manner in which he interposed his good offices with the Emperor of Morocco in behalf of the American vessel and crew captured by one of the corsairs, as well as for the kind disposition he has expressed of his readiness to promote a good understanding between the United States and that Prince. You will communicate to his Majesty that Congress have taken measures for negotiating a permanent peace with the Emperor, and that they would esteem themselves greatly obliged by his Majesty's endeavors to promote the success of the negotiations by exerting his influence at that Court in their favor. You will assure his Majesty that his friendly attention to the United States will always make a correspondent impression on them, and that they will always be happy to embrace every occasion of testifying the sense they entertain of it, as well as of manifesting their sincere disposition to unite the two nations by the strongest ties of mutual affection and reciprocal advantage. Your Secretary takes the liberty of observing that, as their High Mightinesses have agreed by the 23d article of the treaty between them and the United States, to second and aid the negotiations of the latter with the African piratical States, it would, in his opinion, be proper for Congress to avail themselves of this article, and apply to their High Mightinesses accordingly. All which is submitted to the wisdom of Congress. JOHN JAY. FROM JOHN JAY TO THE PRESIDENT OF CONGRESS. Sir, Office for Foreign Affairs, December 29, 1785. Your Excellency will receive, herewith enclosed, a letter to me of 21st instant, from Mr. Temple, who is desirous that Congress would be pleased to pass a resolution that may remove the difficulties stated in it. I have the honor to be, &c., JOHN JAY. Sir, FROM JOHN TEMPLE TO JOHN JAY. New York, December 21, 1785. It having been represented to the Ministers of the King my sovereign, that divers of his Majesty's subjects or loyalists, who had property and outstanding debts in these United States anterior to the late war, (and to whom his Majesty's benevolence and bounty are now about to extend commensurate with their real losses,) have met with great trouble and difficulty in obtaining, and in some instances have been totally refused such office copies from the public records and papers as are indispensably necessary to substantiate their claims before a board of commissioners appointed to receive and examine the same; will you give me leave to request of you to be so obliging as to move the honorable Congress of these United States to take the matter into consideration, and to do thereupon as in their wisdom and justice may appear to be fit and proper upon the occasion, so as that said loyalists or sufferers, or their attorneys, may have access to the public records and papers in the several States, (upon paying the lawful or usual fees of office,) in the same mode and manner as the subjects of the United States are permitted or accustomed to have. I have the honor to be, &c., J. TEMPLE. The letter from Mr. Temple was referred to the Secretary for Foreign Affairs, to report on the propriety of the application and expediency of a reply; in consequence of which reference the Secretary made the following report: Office for Foreign Affairs, December 31, 1785. The Secretary of the United States for the Department of Foreign Affairs, to whom was referred a letter to him of the 21st instant, from the Consul General of his Britannic Majesty, representing that certain persons, called loyalists, had found difficulties in obtaining, and in some instances been refused, office copies of public records in the United States, and desiring the interposition of Congress, &c., reports: That in his opinion your Secretary should write a letter of the following tenor to Mr. Adams.* Your Secretary is further of opinion that he should write the following answer to Mr. Temple's letter, viz: *See the letter to Mr. Adams, page 502. Sir, I took the earliest opportunity, after the meeting of Congress, to lay your letter of 21st December before them. They have ordered a copy of it to be transmitted to their Minister at the Court of London, with directions to communicate it to his Britannic Majesty, to inform him that the complaint stated in it being in general terms, and unsupported by any particular facts or evidence, they do not think it necessary or proper to take any measures in consequence of it; and to assure him that as it is their determination the treaty of peace shall be punctually observed by their citizens, and that his Majesty's subjects shall here enjoy all the rights which friendly and civilized nations claim from each other, so they will always be ready to hear every complaint which may appear to be well founded, and to redress such as on investigation shall prove to be so. I have the honor to be, &c., John Temple, Esquire, Consul General, &c. Resolved, That Congress agree to the said report. FROM JOHN JAY TO JOHN ADAMS. New York, February 3, 1786. Dear Sir, My last to you was written the 2d ultimo. I acknowledge the receipt of your letters of the 15th, 17th, 21st, 25th, and 27th October last; no others have since arrived. All those, as well as the letters which accompanied your draft with Great Britain, together with my reports in favor of them and of that draft, are under the consideration of Congress, and as yet have produced no instructions to you on the subjects of them. So much time has elapsed since nine States were represented in Congress, that many important matters still lie undiscussed and undecided. I herewith enclose two copies of a report of Secretary Thomson, of 2d January, which will afford you accurate information of the acts of the several Legislatures respecting the requisitions of Congress. The facts stated in it place the necessity of more system and stronger federal government in a strong light. Send one copy to Mr. Jefferson. I also enclose a copy of my report (to which Congress has agreed) on the subject of certain representations from Massachusetts which are mentioned in it. The papers which ought to accompany this report are very voluminous, and cannot possibly be copied in time for this packet. They shall be sent by the next, or by any good opportunity that may soon offer. Three vessels will sail from this port for Canton the first fair wind, viz: the ship Empress of China, Captain Green; the ship Hope, Captain McGee; and the brigantine Betsey, Captain Neal McHenry. One is also ready to sail from Philadelphia, viz: the ship Canton, Captain Truxton. Congress have appointed Samuel Shaw, Esq., formerly aid-de-camp to General Knox, to be their Consul at Canton, and Mr. Thomas Randal, of Philadelphia, to be their Vice-Consul there. I just learn that they applied to Mr. Van Berckel for letters to Batavia, but he declined giving them any, although he granted that favor to Captain Green the last voyage. Hence, it seems that the Dutch already begin to be jealous of our commerce with the East. To avoid British laws, a Mr. Lee lately brought here from India a rich cargo, and returns in one of the said vessels. Others will probably do the like; if so, the consequence may be important. Captain Sears, of this town, (whom you know,) adventures largely in this new commerce. He goes to Canton in the Hope. The public paper of this State has lately risen in price, owing to the general expectation that the Legislature are earnest in their profession to restore public credit. Appearances may be delusive, but there is reason at present to expect that this Legislature will do more good than the last. Mr. Temple neither does nor says much, that I can learn. He seems cautious. I have the honor to be, &c., JOHN JAY. P. S. Mr. Wyngrove, who seems to be a very good man, is the bearer of these despatches. "By the United States in Congress assembled, January 2, 1786. "Ordered, That the Secretary of Congress report the number of States which have complied in whole or in part with the revenue 'system of April 18th, 1783, the recommendation of Congress of the 'same date for an alteration of the 8th of the Articles of Confederation, 'and the act of the 30th of April, 1784, recommending the vesting of 'certain commercial powers in Congress.' Office of Secretary of Congress, January 4, 1786. In obedience to the orders of Congress, the Secretary of Congress reports: That the revenue system of 18th April, 1783, consists of two parts: 1st. A recommendation to the States to invest the United States in Congress assembled, with a power to levy for the use of the United States certain duties upon goods imported into the said States from any foreign port, island, or plantation, to be applied to the discharge of the interest and principal of the debts contracted on the faith of the United States, agreeably to the resolution of 16th December, 1782, and not to be continued for a longer term than twenty-five years. The collectors of the duties to be appointed by the States respectively, but when appointed to be amenable to, and removable by the United States in Congress assembled alone. And in case any State shall not make such appointment within one month after notice given for that purpose, the appointment may be made by the United States in Congress assembled. With this part of the act the following States have complied: New Hampshire, by act of 1st and 2d January, 1784. Rhode Island, in the session of their Legislature in the spring of 1785, passed an act for levying the duties pointed out by Congress, but have therein enacted that the collectors shall be appointed by and amenable to the General Assembly, and that of the money arising from the duties a certain sum, viz: 8,000 dollars, shall be appropriated in their Treasury for the payment of the interest of that State's proportion of the foreign debt of the United States, and paid to the order of Congress, and that the surplus of the duties, and the |