To John Jay from John Trumbull, 10 December 1794
From John Trumbull
[[London,] 10th. Decr. 1794.]
Sir
In consequence of your directions, I spoke to Mr. Burges of the propriety of making some acknowledgement on your part to the Two Clerks who wrote the Copies of the Treaty;—and in consequence of our conversation I have this morning enclosed Ten Pounds to Him, with a Request that He will divide it to the Two, according to their Merits.1
This Conversation introduced the general Subject of Presents, when Mr. Burges informed me that it was the established Custom here to present to the Foreign Minister who concluded a Treaty. the Portrait of the King, elegantly set, “and on this Occasion” added He, “I have by Lord Grenville’s direction, already given Orders to the Kings Jeweller to have the Picture, and Box which is to enclose it, finished immediately;— It is also customary to make a proportional present to the Secretary of such minister;—and these are given on the Exchange of the Ratifications.”— I answer’d “that I believed it to be otherwise with us;—and that the Officers of the United States were even prohibited to receive Presents of any kind, from any foreign Prince or State.”
I submit to your Judgement, how far my answer was right;— and how far it was intended by the Constitution to prohibit the ministers of the United States receiving Presents of this Nature.2 I am with every Sentiment of Respect Your most Obliged Servant
Jno. Trumbull
Mr. Jay
ALS, NNC (EJ: 07201). Addressed: “Mr. Jay / &c. &c. &c.” Endorsed: “… abt. presents.” , 4: 148.
1. See JJ Account book, 1794–95, 14, D, NNC.
2. Article 1, section 9, clause 8 of the Constitution stated “And no Person holding any Office of Profit or Trust under them, shall, without the Consent of the Congress, accept of any present, Emolument, Office, or Title, of any kind whatever, from any King, Prince, or foreign State.” However, it was soon recognized that refusing such gifts would be a diplomatic liability. JJ consulted with Thomas Pinckney on the subject. Pinckney, in a letter of 10 Apr. 1795 [ALS, NNC (EJ: 09464); C, ScHi (EJ: 02604)], wrote that before he went to London, TJ told him that he could accept such gifts, as “the acceptance of the present can have no influence on the conduct of the minister” because, among several reasons, it was given to all foreign ministers indiscriminately and after negotiations were completed. In TJ’s view, to refuse such gifts, “might be considered as an offensive peculiarity in the ministers of the United States.” See also GW’s diary entry, 29 Apr. 1790, PGW: Diaries, 6: 70–72. According to his son William, JJ thought it more prudent to adhere to the Constitution and respectfully decline the gift. , 1: 347–48. JJ had encountered this problem before in 1786 as Minister for Foreign Affairs, when the Spanish king gifted him the horse Hermoso. See Introduction; JJ to Diego de Gardoqui, 1 Mar. 1786; JJ to Charles Thomson, 3 Mar. 1786; and the editorial note “Negotiations with Gardoqui Reach an Impasse,” , 4: xxviii, 304–6, 365.