I received yours of the 8th. this Evening, and this being my fourth Letter to You,1 since my Arrival, You must be convinced that Your suspicions of Neglect on my part are groundless, nor is it possible for Me to be so taken up with any Affairs, or so resentful for any Treatment I have met with, as to be unmindful of the public Affairs of Our Country, or forgetful of my Friends, whither in public employ or not. As I pass’d the whole of last Winter & Spring, in Virginia, & left the Continent early in June, I could not bring any important Accounts of Public Transactions, which had not long before my Arrival been published in Europe, and not certain of my Cypher being in Your hands, I could not venture to hazard my private Sentiments in a Letter liable to miscarry or be examined on the Way. Mr. Searle arrived here a few Days since, he left Philada. the 15th & I have seen Papers to the 25th. of July. Nothing of Consequence since the taking of Charlstown had happened. Monsr. Ternay, and the French Forces arrived the 12th. at Rhode Island.2 Adl. Graves joined Adl. Arbuthnot about the Same Time, which gives the enemy a Superiority at sea, from which Circumstance nothing decisive, can be expected this Season, except Count Guichen go to the Northward, which from the near equality of the Fleets in the West Indies cannot be expected. Mr. Laurens was about to Sail for Holland when Mr. Searle left Philada., Mr. Adams has been there some Time. The Temper of the Americans seemed to be, for Exertions to the utmost this Season, and their Spirits were raised by the Assistance sent out, but an Inferiority at Sea is an unfortunate Circumstance, and may prevent the happy Effects otherway to be hoped for. But our greatest Misfortune is our Credit is lost in Europe in France in particular & since the Resolve of Congress of the 18 of March last it is almost as great a Disgrace to be known to be an amer[ican] as it was two Years since an Honor were I not an Eye Witness of the Change it would be absolutely incredible.3 J. Duane, Bancroft4 & the like Characters we are now stigmatized with & passages from the circular Letter of Congress of Septemb last are thrown out agt. us on all occasions & in all Companies. What can we say? H. Laurens is coming over to obtain a Loan whilst Massachus Penna. & Virga. have separate Agents in France for the same purpose who are foolishly making a parade and bidding on each other. More Agents from separate States are on their Way whilst all of us have not unitedly any Credit left, what can this effect but to publish our poverty & disgrace more fully to all Europe?5 J. Adams went from France disgusted & left the Court & People equally so with him. he doubtless means well, but his Character in France is that of being a greater Madman than A. Lee indeed what greater Folly can any one be guilty of than to boast & threaten where he ought to sooth & Conciliate? & is it not the height of Madness to do so to our Friends & in the hours of our Distress.— It is true the System of France is a Ruine one to Ama. They are spinning out the War & making it a War of Finance agt. Engd. rather than of bold decidd. action—but the Riches of Engd. are so much greater than we or France imagined that the Length of Time it will take to defeat them in this Way must ruin us & I fear the indecision of this Camp will do us more Injury than if no Force had been sent out to Ama.— Every ineffectual encouragement operates in a reverse Ratio. This briefly ^is^ my Opinion, on the Subject— A. Lee Izard will not fail to represent it in a worse light in Ama. they will and do declare that the sending out Forces is an artful & insidious System to continue the War, and not a design to end it from the temper in wh. Ama. was, especially the South States when I left them, I fear the Consequences— You are by this Time Tired, if not I am, and therefore with my Respects to Mrs. Jay, & best Wishes for Your Mutual happiness I am most sincerely Dear Sir Your most Obedt. and Very Humble Servt.

I greatly wish to see you, but the settling the Commrs: Acctts. must take up some time here. You know that the only Objections against Me in America were on the Score of those Accts. having been left unsettled, yet Mr. Adams returned to America, without settling even his private Accts. tho’ he had not ^any other Business^ nor did any thing else in Europe but spend Money and keep the Accts. No fault was found with him but he was honorably reappointed. Mr. Lee who remained in France more than a Year after his recall, has not settled either his public, or his private Accts., Mr. Izard, Mr. Lee are in the same predicament. These Men have ^each of them^ as appears by the Accts. received more than Twice the Amt. of public Monies, which I ever recd. & have literally done worse than Nothing, but it is a Subject which I will trust myself no farther on at present; ^such^ ingratitude and injustice are enough to make a Stoic feel. There have been Causes for all this, & Agents employed, not as yet publicly known, and more than one, of the latter, on the List of my pretended friends. I suspected this before I left America; since my return I have demonstration of it. may you my worthy Freind be so happy as never to experience how painful & how cutting it is, to be treated with public ingratitude, edged, and drove on, by the Treachery of those in whom you have confided. You merit a better Fate, but that will not secure You, without that Prudence of which you happily have so great a portion, and of which I have had so little. Nothing can induce me to take a Journey into Spain, except the desire of seeing & conversing with You, Or Affairs of Commerce, in which I must engage to repair my Losses in the public Service; but American Commerce is at This time in as low a point of Reputation, as Our public Credit, nor do I find one Person, out of the many formerly so desirous to adventure, who would send a Shilling that Way, sooner than to throw it into the Sea. in short France rings with Complaints of the heavy Losses of Merchts. by the depreciation in America, many of whom put large Sums in the Loan Office when money was only four for One and tho by the last Resolutions Congress have promised to pay off those Certificates at the rate at which Money stood at the time of their respective dates, yet when the Circular Letter of last Septemr.,6 is compared with the Resolutions of March 18th & subsequent ones, fixing the depreciation at forty for one, and in effect absolutely preventing any Appreciation from that, on the Paper Current, they draw Consequences the most unfavorable (possibly unjust ones) & say, if Congress can by those Acts, annihilate Thirty Nine fortieths of their Notes, nothing prevents their extinguishing a still greater proportion of the residue, or even the whole. It is to no purpose to Reason from future probabilities against Facts, with Men who suffer by those Facts, & that materially, for the present, at least. In short, however well intended those Resolutions might have been they have given a Wound to our Credit as a People, as well as to individuals, which cannot be easily healed. You know the State of Politics when You left America. They are I believe much the Same at this Moment, but my long residence in Virginia gave Me the means of knowing many things, which are not I believe generally understood, and which I wish to communicate to You, but this requires a personal interview. I shall go for Holland next Month, & soon after my return to Bordeaux, this will almost divide the distance between Us, and if Possible I will divide the other half rather than miss of seeing You, but of this in some future Letter; meantime I pray let ^not^ my Letters depreciate like Our Paper, in regards to Yours, this four for One, & each four Times as long, which makes Sixteen for one if I calculate right. I am willing to allow You a considerable discount but so much will sink Me too low in my own Opinion, in short, let Me have Your Letters often, & in some proportion, to the Length of mine, once more, Adieu—

20th. Docr. Franklin does Me the favor to send this under Cover, it may be some days before it goes I shall therefore lay before You some thoughts of mine, on the present Situation of Our Affairs, & to pray Your reflections on them, they have Weight with Me. When the War began no one in Ama. expected a continuance of it to this Time but all hoped for a Speedy Recon[cili]a[tio]n— The Decl’n of Independence was passing the Rubicon, it was made when the first Enthusiasm of the People was still high, heightened by the haughtiness and Cruelty of the English & the Distresses they threatened us with. The Victory at Saratoga and the Treaty with France wh followed kept up the Resolution of the People with the Hope of soon obtaining Peace on Honble Terms— France came into the Treaty on generous & Unconditional Terms & the Fleet sent, out Halifax 1778 confirmed those professions. That Fleet was unsuccessful & the War continued especially Burthensome to Ama. as before the Year after the Fleet of France again came to our Assistance met with less Success than before & we lost Georgia Ch. Town was known to be the next Object of our Enemy. As early as Septr 1779 yet though the English Fleet N. York as late as the 26 of Decr. and did not begin the attack untill April and though France & Spain had All that Time 30 Ships of Line besides Frigates in the Islands with a great land Force unemployed & in 10 or 12 [days]7 Sail of Chs. Town no relief was sent or attempted, to be sent though requested, Chl Town fell, & all South of Cheaspeak would have followed but for Gen. Clintons expectation of the arrival of a french Fleet & Army agt. NYork. this made him return. The M. Fayette arrived in March & promised a Fleet superior to the british & a Land Army cloathing for our whole Army & Money & Supplies. This raised the Spirits of Am & we were promised with more assurance than ever in all the Gazettes this should be the last Campaign. The Fleet arrivd inferior to that of the British with An Army perfectly inadequate to any Offensive Acts & with no Supplies or Money of any Consquence for our army the Cloathing was all left in France & is still in store in France whilst our army is in want & winter Approaches the Fleet was imediately blocked up in NPort & on the 6 of Augt the Army were fortifyg & raising Batteries to defend agt. Gen. Clinton further the Militia of the Country were called in to their Defense instead of their joining Washingn it is easy to See that the utmost to be hoped for is to act with safe on the Defence. The Winter will send the french Fleet & Army to the Islands at least the former, and the latter will be a Burthen or worse to Ama. for must be supplied with Flour &c. and the South State will be more exposed than ever— In the meantime what will be the Reflections of Ama.—their Credit gone & the british as at first to fight with? A. Lee and others have industriously asserted from the first that France was not honest that their Views were not to save Ama. but to reduce Engd. at the expence of Ama.—that France tho. appearing To Act disinterestedly has no other Object in View than to keep publication8 the war & reduce Engd. & Am to such a State that France may in future give that law to all that to effect this they do not desire to expel the british force from the contint but by sending over partial Supplies from Time to Time hold the great Party9 of the British force in Employ there, and to keep Am from falling off until they can bring our Affairs so far that it will be indifferent to them what part we take in future— Tho’ I am very unwilling to give into this reasoning, yet Appearances are too much in favor of it & will go far to credit it in Am where as in all nations the people resolve only from what they see, and feel at the Time—the french officers in their Letters complain of their Situation—in France we are Insulted (I can give it no milder Name) with the great, the generous & unparallelled exertions made in our favor & with our weak want of Faith and ingratitude. You know that in the most Absolute Monarchy the general Voice of the People sometimes originates with the Court and always has, sooner or later influence on the Affairs of the Court—on our first Application to the Court of France we had the Voice of the People Unanimously in our Interest our only Difficulty was with the ministers—exactly the reverse is our affair at present except that so far is [from]10 having the ministers all in our favor, I am persuaded we have but one of them resolutely Determined to pursue & that literally the System first Adopted.—with all the rest & with the Nation at Large we are totally out of the Question, as principals & are only considered as Necessary Means for the Time to be improved in reducing Engd in effectg which the more we are effectd the better. You know my partiality for this Nation from the good & friendly Treatment I have met with. I assure you I have seen nothing since my Return in public or private to complain of.—yet every Appearance tends so directly to confirm the above, that tho’ in all Companies I regret the Idea, yet it remains close to me & gives me the most Alarming Apprehensions. I foresee (the present System followed) our Discontents our Jealousies & Partys in Am encrease to a dangerous heighth whilst France establishg an Army on the Contint & affording us no Decisive aid but holding the Ball[ance]. between Eng & Am & between the Parties in the latter, Am will be so reduced as well as England that the last may be left to its fate without the least Apprehensions of future Events. You will say the honor of France is passed to guaranty our Indepe[ndence] &c. but Treaties rest on equal good Honor & the public Voice declares that we have already broken ours—this is a good prelude to anything that may be bro’t on the Theatre afterwards, reflect I pray You on these Circumstances, [illegible]11 & if in your power shew Me brighter Prospects— You have now a long Letter tho’ in Cypher but I cannot omit giving You my Sentiments on our affairs,—& to contain the whole, if we have not peace & that soon our affairs will be desperate Those employd are not of the conciliatory disposition even to our sufferg much less so to our Enemies in a Word Am Suffers more at this Time by the Ams in Europe than by all other Circumstances & of this you will one Day be convinced—12 Once More Adieu.—