Report on Washington-Carleton Correspondence about Treason, [12 August] 1782

Report on
Washington-Carleton Correspondence about Treason

MS (NA: PCC, No. 19, VI, 399). Written by JM. Docketed “No 90.” in an unknown hand. Below this JM noted, “Report of Committee on the letter from Genl Washington July 19. 1782 recommitted.” Under this appears, in a very small hand, “for Mr. Madison”; beneath this, in still different penmanship, “passed Augt. 12th. 1782.” Instead of “July 19,” JM possibly should have written “July 9,” the date of Washington’s letter, or, more likely, “July 29,” the date when Congress recommitted the committee’s report on that letter. See n. 3, below. On the page with the docket are writings by JM and Rutledge only indirectly relevant to the present report. For these see Papers of Madison description begins William T. Hutchinson, William M. E. Rachal, et al., eds., The Papers of James Madison (5 vols. to date; Chicago, 1962——). description ends , IV, 440–41, and 441, n. 4.

[12 August 1782]1

The Committee to whom were referred Genl Washington’s letter of with the papers inclosed2 submit the following report.3

That Congress approve the conduct of General Washington4 in refusing to enter into any discussion with Genl Carlton on the subject of the Treason5 laws passed by the several States.6

1x That the States of America which compose the Union being sovereign & Independent, the laws respectively passed by them for their internal government & the punishment of their offending Citizens, cannot be submitted to the discussion of a foreign power much less of an enemy.

28 That as soon as due provision shall be made on the part of the Enemy for settling & discharging the balance due to the U. S. for the past maintenance of Prisoners,9 and solid arrangements made10 to provide for them in future,11 a general exchange of Prisoners will be concurred in on the part of the U. States.

3 That a copy of the two last resolutions be transmitted by Genl Washington to Genl Carlton.12

1. See JCC description begins Worthington Chauncey Ford et al., eds., Journals of the Continental Congress, 1774–1789 (34 vols.; Washington, 1904–37). description ends , XXIII, 461–62.

2. Washington’s letter of 9 July 1782, enclosing copies of or extracts from his correspondence with Carleton (Papers of Madison description begins William T. Hutchinson, William M. E. Rachal, et al., eds., The Papers of James Madison (5 vols. to date; Chicago, 1962——). description ends , IV, 415; 416, n. 6; 417–18; Fitzpatrick, Writings of Washington description begins John C. Fitzpatrick, ed., The Writings of George Washington, from the Original Sources, 1745–1799 (39 vols.; Washington, 1931–44). description ends , XXIV, 405–6).

3. The printed journal of Congress (JCC description begins Worthington Chauncey Ford et al., eds., Journals of the Continental Congress, 1774–1789 (34 vols.; Washington, 1904–37). description ends , XXXIII, 461–62) probably errs in stating that the committee which submitted this report had John Lowell as its chairman and Ezekiel Cornell and JM as the other two members. On 15 July Congress had appointed a committee comprising John Witherspoon, chairman, JM, and John Rutledge to recommend a reply to Washington’s queries about his disclaimer to Carleton of authority to protest to New Jersey against her law subjecting captured Loyalists to trial for treason and about the terms of the general cartel, proposed by Carleton, concerning prisoners of war (JCC description begins Worthington Chauncey Ford et al., eds., Journals of the Continental Congress, 1774–1789 (34 vols.; Washington, 1904–37). description ends , XXII, 388, n. 3; NA: PCC, No. 186, fol. 43). Neither the committee book of Charles Thomson nor the printed journal of Congress supports JM’s statement (see headnote) that the committee reported on 19 July (NA: PCC, No. 186, fol. 44; JCC description begins Worthington Chauncey Ford et al., eds., Journals of the Continental Congress, 1774–1789 (34 vols.; Washington, 1904–37). description ends , XXII, 400–404). Moreover, both Thomson and the journal agree that on 29 July the committee’s report, written chiefly by Rutledge and dealing solely with the cartel, was read in Congress and then referred to a new committee having Lowell as its chairman and Cornell and JM as its other members (NA: PCC, No. 186, fol. 46; JCC description begins Worthington Chauncey Ford et al., eds., Journals of the Continental Congress, 1774–1789 (34 vols.; Washington, 1904–37). description ends , XXII, 421–22, 422, n. 1).

JM probably wrote the present proposals prior to the discharge of the Lowell committee on 8 August, or while he was a member of another committee on much the same subject, appointed on 7 August and superseded two days later by a committee with Arthur Lee as its chairman (NA: PCC, No. 186, fol. 48; Papers of Madison description begins William T. Hutchinson, William M. E. Rachal, et al., eds., The Papers of James Madison (5 vols. to date; Chicago, 1962——). description ends , IV, 441, n. 4). Leaving JM’s introductory paragraph unchanged, Lee apparently accompanied his report of 12 August with, and Congress then adopted, the recommendations drafted by JM (JCC description begins Worthington Chauncey Ford et al., eds., Journals of the Continental Congress, 1774–1789 (34 vols.; Washington, 1904–37). description ends , XXIII, 461–62). Charles Thomson in his notes for 12 August did not mention these recommendations (Thomson, “Debates,” description begins Charles Thomson, “Debates in the Congress of the Confederation from July 22d to September 20th, 1782,” Collections of the New-York Historical Society, XI (1878), 63–169. description ends pp. 105–6).

4. JM at first wrote “gen’l. Washington,” then drew a line through it and penned above it, the “Commander in chief.” This he in turn replaced with “General Washington.”

5. JM interlineated this word.

6. Someone placed parentheses along the left-hand edge of this paragraph and the one following, and wrote “passed” in the margin opposite each.

7. This “x” is in the manuscript and is matched by another “x” near the bottom of the page, where the resolution designated as “1” is written. In accordance with JM’s obvious intent, the editors have inserted the paragraph into the document so as to make it the first resolution proposed in the report.

8. Immediately above this paragraph, JM wrote, and then canceled with a line, “that Genl. Washington inform Genl. Carlton.”

9. See Papers of Madison description begins William T. Hutchinson, William M. E. Rachal, et al., eds., The Papers of James Madison (5 vols. to date; Chicago, 1962——). description ends , IV, 318–20; 330–31; 331, n. 5.

10. A deleted “shall” precedes, and a deleted “for them” follows, the word “made.”

11. Following this comma, JM wrote and crossed out “reasonable terms for.”

12. On the folio there appears in JM’s hand what evidently is his first draft of this paragraph, canceled by five crosshatches, reading, “That a copy of the preceding resolutions be transmitted by the Commander in cheif to the British Commander in cheif at New York.” At first, instead of “the Commander in cheif,” JM wrote “General” and then drew a line through it.

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Source Project: Madison Papers
Title: Report on Washington-Carleton Correspondence about Treason, [12 August] 1782
Author: Madison, James
Date: 12 August 1782

Reference

Cite as: “Report on Washington-Carleton Correspondence about Treason, [12 August] 1782,” Founders Online, National Archives, https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Madison/01-05-02-0016. [Original source: The Papers of James Madison, vol. 5, 1 August 1782 – 31 December 1782, ed. William T. Hutchinson and William M. E. Rachal. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1967, pp. 42–43.]