From Alexander Hamilton to William Short, 28 January 1792
To William Short
Treasury Department January 28th 1792
Sir
You will find herewith duplicate of my letter of the 30th of November last—Since which I am without any of your favours.
It is with sincere pleasure, I embrace the opportunity of congratulating you on your appointment to the Hague as Minister Resident.1 This will afford you a better opportunity of watching and appreciating the course of Circumstances. You will consequently be obliged less to rely on others, and I trust by seizing favorable moments, you will be able to reduce the rate of interest on such future loans as may be found necessary.
A bill has lately been drawn upon our Commissioners in favor of Mr Jefferson for 95,947½ guilders for the use of the foreign department.2
I send you herewith copy of a report of mine to the House of Representatives on the 23d instant, and of certain statements which accompanied the same,3 which will give you a view of the present state of Revenue and Expenditure.
Our frontier affairs by occasioning an encrease of the latter will call for an augmentation of the former.
With perfect consideration & esteem I have the honor to remain Sir Your Obedient Servt
Alexander Hamilton
William Short Esquire
Minister Resident of the
united States at the Hague
LS, William Short Papers, Library of Congress. A copy of this letter was enclosed in H’s “Report on Foreign Loans,” February 13, 1793; LS, marked “Third,” Widener Library, Harvard University.
1. The appointment of Short, United States chargé d’affaires at Paris, as United States Minister to The Hague had been confirmed by the Senate on January 16, 1792.