vy; the Congress will instantly deposit their
bills for the amount; the residue may be sold at a stated advance for
Continental bills, the whole of the amount immediately put on interest
to this Court; this will be the calling in of such an amount of the
bills, and of course give the greater currency to the whole. Meantime,
this Court must become interested to have the commerce free, by which
alone remittances can be made. This is but a sudden thought,
recommended to you for consideration, if deemed worthy. That something
may be effected in this way I can have no doubt, while I have this
most unequivocal evidence. I am now credited to the amount of all the
supplies for thirty thousand men, a train of artillery, amounting to
more than two hundred pieces of brass cannon, ammunition, &c. &c.
which must be of near half a million sterling, _not ostensibly by the
Court, but by a private company_. At the same time other companies, as
well as individuals, after offering any loan or credit I should ask,
always brought in sooner or later the condition of having my bills
endorsed by some banker or person of credit; where you are sensible in
my situation the affair ended; though in several instances I had the
most flattering encouragement, and expected most assuredly no security
would be required; but that this particular house should be able and
willing to advance this prodigious sum at once, and without security,
is no way surprising, but perfectly consistent with what I have all
along asserted.

The most effectual card now played by the British Ambassador is,
asserting that an accommodation will soon take place, and by some
means or other conjecturing my want of powers by my not appearing at
Court, he is bold in this assertion, and I find it the greatest
difficulty I have to encounter. But I will not enter on a subject,
which has well nigh distracted me, and embarrassed and disheartened in
a greater or less degree every friend of America. The late conduct of
the Court of Spain respecting Captain Lee, whose case I mentioned
before, is a striking proof of what I have so positively asserted of
the good disposition of both these Courts. They dismissed the
complaint against him, afforded him protection, with assurances of
every assistance he might need, declaring publicly that their ports
were equally free for Americans as for Britons. I have besides these
overt acts still more convincing proofs, that the moment your
application is