DOCUMENTS BEARING ON TREATY OF 1783. 189 



114 No. 121. 1782, December 24- Extract from Madison's Report 



of Debates in Congress. 



TUESDAY, December 24, 1782. 



The letter from Mr. Jay, enclosing a copy of the intercepted 

 letter from Marbois, was laid before Congress. The tenor of it, 

 with the comments of Mr. Jay, affected deeply the sentiments of 

 Congress with regard to France. The policy, in particular, mani- 

 fested by France of keeping us tractable by leaving the British in 

 possession of posts in this country awakened strong jealousies, cor- 

 roborated the charges on that subject, and with concomitant cir- 

 cumstances may engender the opposite extreme of the gratitude and 

 cordiality now felt towards France; as the closest friends in a rup- 

 ture are apt to become the bitterest foes. Much will depend, how- 

 ever, on the course pursued by Britain. The liberal one Oswald 

 seems to be pursuing will much promote an alienation of temper in 

 America from France. It is not improbable that the intercepted 

 letter from Marbois came through Oswald's hands. If Great Britain, 

 therefore, yields the fisheries and the back territory, America will 

 feel the obligation to her, not to France, who appears to be liberal 

 as to the first and favourable to Spain as to the second object, and 

 consequently has forfeited the confidence of the States interested 

 in either of them. 



No. 122. 1782, December 30: Extract from letter, Mr. Livingston 



to Mr. Jay. 



PHILADELPHIA, December 30, 1782. 

 ******* 



Whatever the sentiments of the Count de Vergennes may be with 

 respect to the claims of Spain, in a letter which I have seen he treats 

 them, as well as ours, as chimerical, and declares that he does not 

 mean to interfere in them. You can judge of the sincerity of this 

 declaration. If otherwise, I am at a loss to determine why he treats 

 them so lightly in his letters, or why those letters were communicated 

 to me. For my part I believe their situation with respect to Spain 

 is very delicate and that they are embarrassed by her demands. I 

 mention these matters that you may judge how far language held 

 here and with you agrees. 



As to the letter of 566-16&-143, I am by no means surprised at it, 

 He always endeavored to persuade us that our claim to the fisheries 

 was inadmissable. Yet this is remarkable, and I think evinces the 

 design of France to serve us even on that point. The advice (had 

 the contrary been their object) is certainly judicious, yet we find that 

 no steps have been taken in consequence of it. On the contrary, we 

 have been told in a formal communication that the King will obtain 

 everything for us that circumstances will admit, and that nothing 

 but sad necessity shall induce him to relinquish any of these objects 

 which we have at heart, and that he does not imagine from the then 

 view of his affairs that such necessity will exist. This communica- 



