Papers of John Adams, volume 17
I have recd your Favours of the 8. &. 10, and although I am Sorry you did not find every Thing to your Satisfaction in America, I congratulate You on your Safe Arrival in Europe and wish you Success in your Views.1
If by giving a proper Consistency to our Confederation you mean, the making of Congress Souvereign and Supream in the Negotiation of Treaties of Commerce, and in Regulating the Commerce between one State and another, and indeed in regulating the internal Commerce of the States, as far as it is necessarily connected with either, I wish it all imaginable Success.
You have Seen no doubt, the Massachusetts Act of Navigation. what do you think of it? Will it be followed by Similar Acts in all or any of the other States?— I Should think that all the States from Delaware to New Hampshire inclusively might immediately build Ships enough for their own Exportations: but can these furnish in Season, Ships enough for their own Exportations and those of Maryland Virginia, the Carolinas and Georgia, too? it appears to me that if they cannot do it, at once, they will be able to affect it in a Year or two.
But what will England do? Will She retaliate? will She exclude our Ships from her Ports? certainly She will not if all the States make Navigation Acts like that of the Massachusetts. because this would bar out, the American Trade which would immediately affect her Manufactures and Revennue So essentially, that She could not Stand the Shock.
I hope that neither the Massachusetts, nor any other State will Stop at a Navigation Act. if this Court will not agree to an equitable Treaty, I hope our States will all immediately give Bounties to various Manufactures among themselves, and lay on heavy Duties upon every Article of Luxury from the British Dominions, Such Duties as will make it clearly our Interest to purchase the Same Articles from France, Holland, Germany, or any other Country of Europe where they can be had.
We must and We will have Justice from this Country, proud and cunning as she is.
With much Esteem, I have the Honour to be / dear sir, your servant
I Shall be glad to receive, what you promise me, the Reasons for establishing Such a Society, as the Constitutional Society, whose printed Rules you were so good as to inclose to me.
RC (DLC:Mazzei Papers); internal address: “Mr Mazzei.”; endorsed: “John Adams 23. Agsto / rispto 5. 7bre / 1785.” LbC (Adams Papers); APM Reel 111.
For Mazzei’s letter of 8 Aug., see his of the 10th, and note 1, above.
En réponse aux ordres dont vous m’avez honoré, conjointément avec Son Exce. Mr. Jepherson, en date de Londres Août 5e., Nous avons vaqué tout de suite à la Commission en question. Mr. Short est occupé à rendre un compte à V V. E E. de ce qui a été fait & de ce qui reste à faire, auquel je suis persuadé d’avance que je n’aurai rien à ajouter, que l’assurance de ma juste sensibilité à la confiance dont vous honorez ma personne, mes principes & mon Zele invariable pour les intérêts des Etats-Unis; & du respect personnel avec lequel je suis, De Votre Excellence le très-humble, & très-obéissant serviteur,
L’incluse pour le Congrès, accompagnée d’une pour Mr. Van Berckel, vous fera voir la suite des affaires allemandes; Je suis toujours à attendre les Lettres de France.2
Responding to the orders which you, jointly with his excellency Mr. Jefferson, bestowed upon me in your letter dated from London on 5 August, we have immediately attended to the errand in question. Mr. Short is busying himself with a report for your excellencies of what has been and remains to be done, to which I am already confident I will have nothing to add other than my recognition of the justifiable gratitude I feel for the trust with which you honor myself, my principles, and my unwavering zeal for the interests of the United States; and of the personal respect with which I am your excellency’s most humble and most obedient servant
The enclosed letter addressed to Congress, accompanied by one for Mr. Van Berckel, will make known to you how the German affairs proceed. I am still awaiting the letters from France.2
RC (Adams Papers); internal address: “à Son Excellence Mr. Adams, Min. Plenipe des E. U.”
Dumas also wrote to Thomas Jefferson on this date (Jefferson, Papers
, 8:424–425).
In a letter to JA of [ca. 19 Aug.] (Adams Papers), Dumas wrote that he was awaiting some secret, but interesting, letters from France as well as Germany. The enclosed letter to Congress probably was dated 23 Aug., but its content cannot be determined since the RC’s of all of Dumas’ letters to Congress between 31 Jan. 1785 and 26 Jan. 1787 have been lost (
Dipl. Corr., 1783–1789
, 3:539–541). However, in his letterbook Dumas indicates that his 23 Aug. 1785 letter consisted of an extract from a 16 Aug. letter that has not been found, by an otherwise unidentified correspondent (Nationaal Archief:Dumas Papers, Microfilm, Reel 2, f. 736).