I have been honour’d with your Excellency’s Letter of the 23d Inst. and have communicated to Capt. Douglass the contents as far as they respected him.

By intelligence from New York this instant deliverd, I am informed, that a private Express arrived there at one o’Clock last night from Philadelphia, conveying an account of the arrival of a french Sloop of War on sunday afternoon from Cadiz in 35 day’s—which brings an account that the preliminaries for a general Peace was signed in the 20th of January and that all captures made in america after the 20th of March should be of no effect damages in consequence of such Capture should be made good.

Inclosed are the papers of this month up to the 22d and some london Gazette’s—I have forwarded numbers of similar dates, but as they contain the debates of Parliment on—& are in a regular succession, I presume they will be acceptable. I have the honor to be Your Excellency’s Most Obedt Servt