would insist on terms
proportionately more hard and prejudicial:

That we had little reason to expect an alliance with those to whom alone
as yet we had cast our eyes:

That France and Spain had reason to be jealous of that rising power,
which would one day certainly strip them of all their American
possessions:

That it was more likely they should form a connection with the British
court, who, if they should find themselves unable otherwise to extricate
themselves from their difficulties, would agree to a partition of our
territories, restoring Canada to France, and the Floridas to Spain, to
accomplish for themselves a recovery of these colonies:

That it would not be long before we should receive certain information
of the disposition of the French court, from the agent whom we had sent
to Paris for that purpose:

That if this disposition should be favorable by waiting the event of the
present campaign, which we all hoped would be successful, we should have
reason to expect an alliance on better terms:

That this would in fact work no delay of any effectual aid from such
ally, as, from the advance of the season and distance of our situation,
it was impossible we could receive any assistance during this campaign:

That it was prudent to fix among ourselves the terms on which we should
form alliance, before we declared we would form one at all events:

And that if these were agreed on, and our Declaration of Independence
ready by the time our ambassador should be prepared to sail, it would be
as well as to go into the Declaration at this day.

On the other side, it was urged by J. Adams, Lee, Wythe, and others that
no gentleman had argued against the policy or the right of separation
from Britain, nor had supposed it possible we should ever renew our
connection; that they had only opposed its being now declared:

That the question was not whether, by a Declaration of Independence, we
should make ourselves what we are not; but whether we should declare a
fact which already exists:

That, as to the people or Parliament of England, we had always been
independent of them, their restraints on our trade deriving efficacy
from our acquiescence only, and not from any rights they possessed of
imposing them, and that so far, our connection had been federal only,
and was now dissolved by the commencement of hostilities:

That, as to the King, we had been bound to him by allegiance, but that
this bond was now dissolv