e arises from that reliance on his Majesty's friendship
and magnanimity, which your Excellency has so often encouraged me to
entertain and confide in.

"I have the honor to be, &c. &c.

JOHN JAY."

This letter, if I may use the expression, might have been higher
mounted, and the strange conduct of this Court would have justified my
writing in a different style, but I feared that offence might have
been taken, though, perhaps, for no other purpose than to cover a
refusal to aid us with a plausible pretext.

Although I had little confidence in M. Del Campo's late professions of
friendship, yet, as the present occasion afforded an opportunity of
trying their sincerity, and as men ill-disposed towards us are
sometimes pushed into acts of friendship, merely by an opinion of
their being thought friendly, I enclosed the above letter in the
following note to him.

"Madrid, March 2d, 1782.

"Mr Jay presents his compliments to M. Del Campo, and takes the
liberty of enclosing a letter to his Excellency, the Count de Florida
Blanca, which he requests the favor of him to deliver.

"M. Del Campo may not, perhaps, in future have an opportunity of
rendering a more welcome and interesting proof of his friendship for
America than at present; and Mr Jay will esteem his country and
himself greatly obliged by M. Del Campo's friendly attention and
interposition on this occasion."

A week elapsed without my receiving any answer either from the
Minister or M. Del Campo. The time when our bills would be due was
drawing very nigh. My expectations of aid from France were at best
uncertain, and every consideration urged me not to leave anything in
my power undone here, to avoid the catastrophe I had so much reason to
apprehend. I therefore concluded to wait on the Minister, and in a
plain and pointed manner enter into a detail of the reasons given us
to expect supplies from this Court, and the impolicy of withholding
them.

For this purpose I went to the Pardo on the 9th of March.

The Minister received me with great cordiality; he was in uncommon
good spirits. He entered largely into the nature of his indisposition;
the effect of the weather upon his nerves, and how much he found
himself the better for the last three fine days; and after we had
conversed awhile about the conquest of Minorca, and the importance of
it, he sai