n the main good, yet his strength had been severely tried by his
journey to Canada and by the voyage. He was troubled with a cutaneous
complaint, of which he makes light, but which was abundant evidence that
his physical condition was far from perfect; he was a victim of the
gout, which attacked him frequently and with great severity, so that he
was often obliged to keep his bed for days and weeks; when he was
appointed sole minister of the States to France he remarked that there
was "some incongruity in a _plenipotentiary_ who could neither stand nor
go;" later on he suffered extremely from stone and gravel; with all
these diseases, and with the remorseless disease of old age gaining
ground every day, it is hardly surprising that Franklin seemed to the
hale and vigorous Adams not to be making that show of activity which
would have been becoming in the chief representative of the United
States during these critical years. Yet except that he was careless
about his papers and remiss in his correspondence, no definite
allegations are made against him prior to the treating for peace; no
business of importance was ever said to have failed in his hands, which
should be a sufficient vindication of his general efficiency. The amount
of labor which was laid upon him was enormous: he did as much business
as the managing head of a great banking-house and a great mercantile
firm combined; he did all the diplomacy of the United States; he was
also their consul-general, and though he had agents in some ports, yet
they more often gave trouble than assistance; after the commercial
treaty with France he had to investigate French laws and tariffs and
give constant advice to American merchants upon all sorts of questions
as to statutes, trade, customs, dues, and duties. What he did concerning
the warships, the privateers, and the prizes has been hinted at rather
than stated; what he did in the way of financiering has been imperfectly
shown; he was often engaged in planning naval operations either for Paul
Jones and others in European waters or for the French fleet in American
waters. He had for a perpetual annoyance all the captiousness and the
quarrels of the two Lees, Izard, and Thomas Morris. When business had to
be transacted, as often occurred, with states at whose courts the United
States had no representative, Franklin had to manage it;[71] especially
he was concerned with the business in Spain, whither he would have
journeyed in per