1Silas Deane to Robert Morris and the Committee of Secret Correspondence, 23 June 1776 (Franklin Papers)
ALS : (duplicate): Library of Congress This letter, in form to Morris but in fact to the committee, is the only one from Deane that Franklin surely saw before his departure for France; it was therefore part of his small stock of information about what would face him in Europe. The letter deals only with the preliminaries of Deane’s mission, because he reached France long after he had hoped to....
2To John Jay from Robert Morris, 23 September 1776 (Jay Papers)
Altho your express delivered me your favour last Wednesday or Thursday yet I did not receive the letter from M r . Deane untill this day and shall now send after the Express that he may Convey this safe to your hands. Shou’d he be gone I must find some other safe conveyance. You will find enclosed both M r . D—ne’s letters as you desired and I shall thank you for the Copy of the Invisible...
3To John Jay from Robert Morris, 12 January 1777 (Jay Papers)
I have been possessed of your obliging fav r . of the 2 d Ulto a considerable time, but being too much pressed with public & private business to permit my being a regular correspondent it is needless to apologize. You undoubtedly must have been well acquainted with the rapid progress made by our Enemies through the Jerseys and the danger to which this City has been exposed for some Weeks past,...
4To John Jay from Robert Morris, 4 February 1777 (Jay Papers)
Your favour of the 7 th Ult o came safe to hand, Timothy Jones is certainly a very entertaining, agreable Man, one woud not judge so from any thing contained in his cold insipid letter of the 17 th Sept r . unless you take pains to find the Concealed beauties therein, The Cursory observations of a Sea Captain wou’d never discover them, but transferred from his hand to the penetrating Eye of a...
5To John Jay from Robert Morris, 1 April 1777 (Jay Papers)
The enclosed letters came by a French Ship to New Hampshire & were sent under Cover to me by M r Langdon with many others, I believe they are from England, and wish they may convey agreable Tidings. Last Week a Brig t arrived here with 6800 Muskets & 2100 Gun Locks, another in Maryl d With 633 bbls Powder & this ship into Portsmouth brought with her about 12,000 Muskets, 1000 bbls Powder a...
6To John Jay from Robert Morris, 6 July 1780 (Jay Papers)
I am absolutely ashamed to think how long you have been gone & that in all that time I have not found time ^ leisure ^ to write you a line, & even now sit down in the midst of hurry & Confusion occasioned by the dispatch of several Vessels under my care all going away together; just to enclose a letter from M rs . Meredith at Trenton to M rs . Jay. I regret that I did not fix a Cypher with...
7To John Jay from Robert Morris, 5 June 1781 (Jay Papers)
I must freely acknowledge the justice of Your charge against me as a bad Correspondant, for the force of Truth wou’d Convict were I to deny, and perhaps Friendship will hardly bear with paliatives but knowing well your attachment to and practice of Sincerity, I shall honestly tell you I did not like to write on political matters, and in what may be called Domestick you had constantly better...
8To John Jay from Robert Morris, 29 June 1781 (Jay Papers)
I did expect to have written you official letters before this time, having now received my Commission and fairly entered upon the duties of my Station, but Congress press business on me so exceedingly, that I cannot yet command the time necessary for writing all I have to say to you. This I write at the request of a most worthy man, my friend M r . John Ross, to whom Congress have made a...
9To John Jay from Robert Morris, 4 July 1781 (Jay Papers)
The Derangement of our Money Affairs. The Enormity of our public Expenditures. The Confusion in all our Departments. The Langour of our general System. The Complexity and consequent Inefficacy of our Operations. These are some, among the many, Reasons which have induced Congress to the Appointment of a Superintendent of Finance. I enclose you Copies of their Resolutions on that Subject, with...
10To John Jay from Robert Morris, 7 July 1781 (Jay Papers)
This will accompany my former Letter of the 4 th Instant, which you will perceive to be so written, as that it may be shewn if necessary to the spanish Minister. You will make such Use of it as Prudence may dictate. I would gladly now give you Details of our Situation and Plans for reforming it But I have not yet sufficiently obtained the one, nor mastered the other. Whenever I am in Capacity...
11To John Jay from Robert Morris, 9 July 1781 (Jay Papers)
Observing by your Correspondence with Congress that you are put to a great deal of Expence by American Seamen arriving from Captivity at Cadiz where they also grow very troublesome— I offer the following Proposal to your consideration— Authorise M r Harrison or whoever may be your Agent at Cadiz, to enter into Contracts with Such Americans as present themselves for the Bounty of their Country...
12To John Jay from Robert Morris, 13 July 1781 (Jay Papers)
I enclose you in this Packet the Plan of a national Bank, which I have been induced to adopt for the following Reasons. The issuing of a large Paper Medium converted the Coin of the Country into a Commodity; so that much of it was exported, and the Remainder concealed. The Depreciation of our Paper has so lessened our Currency that there is not a Sufficiency for Commerce and Taxation without...
13To John Jay from Robert Morris, 15 August 1781 (Jay Papers)
Enclosed you have a List of sundry Bills of Exchange drawn on you. I wrote you relatively to these Bills on the twenty ninth day of July last with sundry Enclosures Explanatory of my Letter I am now to inform you that the Advices contained in that Letter must from particular circumstances be totally disregarded. Should any of the Bills mentioned in the enclosed List come to your Hands you will...
14To John Jay from Robert Morris, 19 October 1781 (Jay Papers)
I believe Kitty Livingston has availed herself of this good Conveyance by Matthew Ridley Esq r . to write you very fully & of course she will have told you all the news both Domestick & Political— M rs . Morris has also written to M rs Jay & no doubt assures her of that Esteem & affection in which she holds both her and you. I need not tell you how Sincerely I join her in those Sentiments. You...
15To John Jay from Robert Morris, 3 January 1783 (Jay Papers)
You have not heard from me so often as you had a right to expect, I lament but cannot help it, constant employment puts it out of my Power to do many things I wish to do and that of writing to my Friends is amongst the Number. My private letters however cannot be of much consequence and you must accept the Will for the Deed .— Gen l Du Portail delivered me your very obliging letter of the 13...
16To John Jay from Robert Morris, 12 May 1783 (Jay Papers)
The Bills drawn by Congress in their Necessities, press very heavily upon me; and one of the greatest among many Evils attending them is the Confusion in which they have involved the Affairs of my Department. I have never yet been able to learn how many of these Bills have been paid nor how many remain due neither am I without my fears that some of them have received double Payment. To bring...
17To John Jay from Robert Morris, 31 May 1783 (Jay Papers)
I have none of your Letters to answer; the receipt of those which you formerly honored me with afforded me very great satisfaction, which I mention as an inducement for you to write more. We are told that your Health is injured and that you have been traveling to try whether change of air and Exercise will restore it. Wishes rarely produce any effect but I cannot restrain mine, they are...
18To John Jay from Robert Morris, 26 July 1783 (Jay Papers)
M r . Darby & M r . Grigby have severally delivered your introductory letters of the 8 th of April and I flatter my self that they will think themselves obliged to you. they are very deserving young Gentl n . & make an agreable addition to our Circle of Society, this how ever will be of short duration as their own pursuits will very soon seperate us. M r & M rs . Carter, & Col o . Wadsworth...