st._ At one o'clock I waited on the President of the
State of Pennsylvania, at his house in Market Street, and met there Mr
Peters and Mr Cornell, of the Board of War, General St Clair, General
Irvine, and General Irwin, of the militia. This conference lasted a
considerable time, and in its consequences took up the rest of the
day. I gave it as my opinion, that Sir Henry Clinton did not intend
for this city, nevertheless, as the inhabitants are alarmed and
uneasy, I agreed to the propriety of being prepared, although I
lamented the expense such preparations would put us to. I advised the
placing a garrison at Mud Island, and putting that place in a posture
of defence, and mentioned the plan proposed to me by Mr Paine, of
collecting immediately one quarter's rent from all the houses in
Philadelphia, in order to have an immediate supply of money to defray
the expenses, &c. _Diary._

* * * * *

TO M. DE LA LUZERNE.

Office of Finance, September 25th, 1781.

Sir,

I received last night your Excellency's billet requesting to be
informed of the amount of the bills drawn by me; as Superintendent of
the Finances, on Messrs Le Couteulx & Co. of Paris, under the sanction
of your engagements.

This communication I intended making to your Excellency in consequence
of the conversation that passed between us a few days since; but it
was only yesterday that I completed the delivery of such bills as had
been sold previous to that conversation, which amounted to fiftyseven
thousand seven hundred and eighty livres; and now on summing up the
whole I find, that I have drawn one hundred and eightyone sets of
bills, all at sixty days' sight, in favor of various persons to whom
they have been sold, amounting to nine hundred and one thousand and
eighteen livres, four sous, and eight deniers tournois; of these bills
three hundred and seventysix thousand one hundred and twentytwo
livres, ten sous, have been sold at five shillings and six pence for
five livres, and five hundred and twenty four thousand eight hundred
and ninetyfive livres, fourteen sous, eight deniers, at six shillings
for five livres; by which it appears the discount does not exceed
sixteen and five eighths per cent on the value in Europe; and were
this money to be imported I suppose the freight and insurance might
amount to nearly the value of that discount; if so, this mode of
bringi