From John Adams to the President of Congress, 18 January 1781

To the President of Congress

Amsterdam, 18 January 1781. RC in John Thaxter’s hand PCC, No. 84, III, f. 87–44. printed: Wharton, ed., Dipl. Corr. Amer. Rev. description begins Francis Wharton, ed., The Revolutionary Diplomatic Correspondence of the United States, Washington, 1889; 6 vols. description ends , 4:235–238.

Read by Congress on 19 Nov., this letter consisted of English translations of two placards or edicts of the States General dated 12 January. The first granted letters of marque and established bounties for Dutch privateers that captured or destroyed British warships or privateers. The second established the compensation due sailors maimed in the service of the Republic.

RC in John Thaxter’s hand (PCC, No. 84, III, f. 87–44). printed: Wharton, ed., Dipl. Corr. Amer. Rev. description begins Francis Wharton, ed., The Revolutionary Diplomatic Correspondence of the United States, Washington, 1889; 6 vols. description ends , 4:235–238.

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Source Project: Adams Papers
Title: From John Adams to the President of Congress, 18 January 1781
Author: Adams, John
Recipients: President of Congress
Huntington, Samuel
Date: 18 January 1781

Reference

Cite as: “From John Adams to the President of Congress, 18 January 1781,” Founders Online, National Archives, https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Adams/06-11-02-0037. [Original source: The Adams Papers, Papers of John Adams, vol. 11, January–September 1781, ed. Gregg L. Lint, Richard Alan Ryerson, Anne Decker Cecere, Celeste Walker, Jennifer Shea, and C. James Taylor. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2003, p. 55.]