as I shall have concluded the commercial treaty, even without waiting
for the permission of Congress to do so. I pray you to represent the
matter to Congress in such a light, that they may not consider it as
disrespectful to themselves, or a breach of duty. It is truly, Sir, an
act of absolute necessity, which Congress, doubtless without
intention, have imposed upon me, by annexing an appointment to my
office, which is not more than half sufficient to defray the expenses
of it. As I can now do it with more freedom, not being interested in
the matter, I take the liberty to acquaint you, that if Congress
should think proper to send another Minister to this Court, of the
second class, they should grant him at least £2500 sterling fixed
appointment. I think £3000 will not be too much, or more than put him
upon an equality with their other Ministers in Europe, or the
Ministers of the lesser Sovereigns at this Court, leaving him to pay
his Secretary out of the last sum. It will be further necessary to
grant him at least £1000 more for his equipage and household
furniture. He will find it exceedingly difficult with the best
economy, to provide himself but decently with those articles,
according to the fashion of this country with that sum. And he must,
in some measure, adapt himself to this fashion or manner of living,
or, in the eyes of those among whom he is obliged to live, disgrace
his country.
My ideas of these matters are not extravagant. I find them fully
supported by my own observations, and by the inquiries I have made
respecting the appointments of the other foreign Ministers residing at
this Court, as well as by the opinion of my correspondent, to whom,
feeling the necessity of my situation, I have communicated my
intention of returning to America, and disclosed to him the reasons of
a conduct, which he might otherwise think unaccountable. I have
consulted him as a private friend only. An ill state of health, the
distance of America, the dangers of a winter passage, &c. &c. must be
the ostensible reasons why I quit this Court without being relieved by
another Minister, or waiting for the permission of Congress. I shall
take the whole upon myself, and hope to be justified in the measure by
Congress, when they shall be still more particularly informed of
facts. It is necessary Congress should be acquainted with the
foregoing facts, that if they should think proper to send another
Minister before my arrival in America, he may not be obliged to follow
the example I shall have set him, by quitting his station without
leave.
I am, Sir, with the greatest respect, &c.
FRANCIS DANA.
* * * * *
TO ROBERT R. LIVINGSTON.
St Petersburg, April 17th, 1783.
Sir,
My letter of the 7th of March will have advised you, that on that day
I communicated my mission to the Vice Chancellor by a letter, the
translation of which was enclosed. By that of the 12th of March, you
will have a particular account of the assurances mentioned in the
former, and which, together with the general state of affairs,
confirmed me in the opinion, that I ought no longer to delay taking
that step. I have not, however, yet had an answer to my letter. That
the assurances I received were well founded at the time, I think, may
not be doubted. What, it may be asked, has since taken place which
could occasion any change? All that I know, or have heard of is, that
on the 7th of February, three days after, and before my letter had
been laid before her Majesty, a courier arrived with despatches for
the French Minister, inviting her Imperial Majesty to mediate, in
conjunction with the Emperor at the conclusion of the definitive
treaty of peace, between the Courts of Versailles, Madrid, and London;
this invitation was immediately accepted; that an account has been
received, that the King of Sweden has concluded a treaty of commerce
with the United States, at Paris, or is at least in treaty with them
for that purpose; that the King of France has signified to the
Emperor, that since the Porte has made the concessions required by the
Empress, and supported by himself, he had reason to expect all
military preparations would have ceased; that he cannot regard the
continuance of them with indifference, &c. &c. Add to these things,
that her Majesty has been either so much indisposed, or particularly
engaged, that she has not appeared at Court for more than a month
past.
Whether either of these circumstances has occasioned this delay, is to
me as yet uncertain. I wait to see the effect of a second letter,
which I propose to send to the Vice Chancellor before I attempt to
account for it. I have delayed this more than a fortnight, having been
in daily expectation of an event which has not taken place, and which
may have an influence in the case. I have omitted to write you by
several posts, because I was in hopes all things which respect us
would have been adjusted to mutual satisfaction, and I was unwilling
to suggest anything to the contrary. But as Congress, from my former
letters may have expected, that I might soon be on my way to America,
and may perhaps name another Minister to this Court, before they
receive any intelligence of my reception, I think it incumbent on me
to make the present communication, that they may consider the
expediency of sending another till they receive a certain account of
my reception.
Whatever may be the event, I flatter myself if the general state of
affairs at the time of the communication of my mission be considered,
and especially the assurances which were given to me, it will not be
thought that I have rashly precipitated that measure. It is difficult
to conceive one solid objection against the admission of an American
Minister into any Court of Europe, after the acknowledgment of our
independence by the King of Great Britain, and the cessation of
hostilities, which of course puts an end to all ideas of neutrality.
In this instant I am informed, that the event above alluded to has
taken place, I shall therefore send my second letter tomorrow, a copy
of which I will forward by the next post, when I shall hope to have an
answer to my first, which will make known the pleasure of her Majesty
concerning my mission. I have purposely avoided waiting upon the Vice
Chancellor in person, that I might obtain his answer, if possible, in
writing. When I shall have received it, whether it be favorable or
not, I shall desire an interview with him. In this course my
correspondent agrees with me in opinion. I have only to pray, Congress
would be pleased to suspend their judgment upon this matter, and
particularly upon my conduct in it, till they shall be fully informed
of facts. All may yet end as we wish, it may end otherwise.
I have the honor to be, &c.
FRANCIS DANA.
_P. S._ I make use of the cypher I sent you by Mr Adams's son, having
laid yours aside for the reason there mentioned. Your printed one has
not come to hand with your letter. Count Panin died since my last,
much lamented. He had long lived a retired life in the city. His
death, therefore, makes no change.
F. D.
* * * * *
TO ROBERT R. LIVINGSTON.
St Petersburg, April 22d, 1783.
Sir,
In my last I acquainted you, that I proposed to send a second letter
to the Vice Chancellor the next day. I did not do it, however, till
yesterday morning, when he sent me his compliments, and said he would
present it to her Majesty. The following is a copy of it.
TO COUNT OSTERMANN.
"I did myself the honor to write to your Excellency on the 7th of
March, to inform you of my mission on the part of the United States of
America, to reside near her Imperial Majesty, in the character of
their Minister, and to request the honor of an audience of your
Excellency, that I might present to you a copy of my letter of
credence to her Imperial Majesty. I have not yet been honored with an
answer to my letter, having had only a verbal message from your
Excellency, on the 10th of the same month that you had received it,
but it being the first week in Lent, you had not had an opportunity to
lay it before her Imperial Majesty.
"After the King of Great Britain has in form acknowledged the
independence of the United States of America, and concluded a
provisional preliminary treaty of peace with them, which has taken
effect by the signing of the preliminary treaty of peace between their
most Christian and Britannic Majesties, after those treaties have been
ratified on the part of their Majesties, and proclamations in
pursuance thereof have been issued by them, and also by the Ministers
of the United States of America, ordering a cessation of hostilities,
and after the British Parliament have solemnly engaged to observe and
maintain those treaties; after such national transactions on both
parts, I flatter myself it is not doubted, that the course of events
has prepared the way for her Imperial Majesty to receive a Minister
from the United States of America, without the least infraction upon
the system of neutrality, which she had adopted and so gloriously
maintained through the late war. Presuming, from your Excellency's
message, that my letter was laid before her Imperial Majesty the week
after, I take the liberty to request that you would be pleased to
inform me of her pleasure thereupon, as well for the government of my
own conduct, as for the certain information of the United States of
America.
"I have the honor to be, &c.
FRANCIS DANA.
"_St Petersburg, April 21st, 1783._"
I have some intimations of a very extraordinary objection, which has
been suggested to my present admission into this Court, viz. that my
letter of credence must necessarily bear date prior to the
acknowledgment of the independence of the United States by the King of
Great Britain. Should the answer to my communication be of that
nature, I will let you know from whence I think it originates. But I
shall think it my duty to leave this Court as soon as possible. For I
should not dare to apply to Congress to revoke their first letter of
credence, and send me another bearing date since that period, for the
following reasons, which occur to me at once.
1st. Because it would be to desire the United States to strike off
seven years of their existence, as free, sovereign, and independent
States.
2dly. Because their compliance with it would, in effect, annul their
resolution contained in the declaration of their independence, viz.
"that as free and independent States they had full power to levy war,
conclude peace, contract alliances, establish commerce, and to do all
other acts and things, which independent States may of right do."
3dly. Because it would imply on their part, that they owed their
existence as a free nation, to the acknowledgment of their
independence by the King of Great Britain.
4thly. Because as a consequence of this last position, it would go to
annul all their acts of sovereignty prior to that period, and among
others, the most important ones of their treaties with France and
Holland, as well as their commissions granted to their Ministers at
the Court of Madrid and other Courts, and such treaties as they have
already made, or shall hereafter make in virtue thereof.
5thly. Because the requisition of new letters of credence bearing date
since the period abovementioned, involves in itself a decision on the
part of her Imperial Majesty, that the United States of America ought
of right to be considered as a free, sovereign, and independent power,
but in virtue of the acknowledgment of them as such by the King of
Great Britain.
6thly. Because the granting of new letters of credence, would amount
to a confession on the part of the United States, of the justice of
such a decision.
7thly. Because a compliance with such a requisition would, in my
opinion, in every point of view, be highly derogatory to the dignity
of the United States, and is a sacrifice, which circumstances by no
means require to be made.
But I hope for more wisdom, justice, and impartiality from her
Majesty; and that I shall receive in a day or two, a satisfactory
answer to my first letter.
I have the honor to be, &c.
FRANCIS DANA.
* * * * *
TO ROBERT R. LIVINGSTON.
St Petersburg, April 25th, 1783.
Sir,
In consequence of my second letter to the Vice Chancellor, of the 21st
instant, he sent me a verbal message with his compliments on the 23d
in the morning, and desired to see me at four o'clock in the
afternoon. I waited upon him accordingly, and had a conference with
him upon the subject of my mission. He began by saying that he had
received the letters I had done him the honor to write him; that her
Majesty had been invited by the Courts of Versailles, Madrid, and
London, to mediate in conjunction with the Emperor, at the conclusion
of the definitive treaty of peace between them; that till those
affairs were arranged, and the definitive treaty signed, her Majesty
could not, consistent with her character of mediator, receive a
Minister from America without the consent of those powers; that the
treaty of America was provisional only, and dependent upon those
arrangements; and though there was no doubt but they would take place,
and that the definitive treaty would be concluded, yet, till that was
done, her Majesty could not consider me in my character as the
Minister of America.
Here he made a long pause, as if waiting for an answer, but knowing
that the whole had not yet come out, I made no attempts to reply. He
then added, that he supposed my letter of credence bore date before
the acknowledgment of the independence of America by the King of Great
Britain, and asked me if that was not the fact. I told him that it
must necessarily be so, as a sufficient time had not since elapsed to
receive one from America. He then said, that when the above
arrangements should be completed, if I should produce new letters of
credence, bearing date since the King of Great Britain had
acknowledged the independence of America, her Majesty would be very
willing to receive me as the Minister of America, but that it would be
incompatible with that exact neutrality, which her Majesty had
hitherto observed, to do it before; that it would be irregular also
for her Majesty to admit a Minister from a power, whose letter of
credence bore date before she had acknowledged the independence of
that power; that besides, no Minister had been received from America
at the Court of Great Britain yet, and that I must be sensible it
would not be consistent for her Majesty to receive one before the King
of Great Britain had done it. Here he stopped again; and knowing that
he had gone through his whole subject, which comprises these simple
matters only, viz.
1st. That her Majesty could not, consistent with the character of a
mediator as above, receive a Minister from the United States, till the
conclusion of the definitive treaty between France, Spain, and Great
Britain;
2dly. That she could not do it even then, consistent with the laws of
neutrality, while his letter of credence bore date prior to the
acknowledgment of their independence by the King of Great Britain;
3dly. That she could not do it regularly, while his letter of credence
bore date before she herself had acknowledged their independence;
4thly. That she could not do it consistently before a Minister had
been received from the United States in Great Britain.
I desired him to favor me with a note containing the substance of this
answer, as it was of great importance, and much in affairs of this
sort depended upon the very expressions; that with the fairest
intentions, I might misrepresent some parts of it through
forgetfulness, and that I would deliver him my observations upon it in
writing for consideration, when the exact state of the matter would be
known. Finding, as I had expected, that he declined this, I began my
reply with a preface of this sort; the answer, which your Excellency
has given me on the part of her Imperial Majesty, is wholly
unexpected, not only to myself, but to the United States. I cannot,
therefore, take upon me to say anything upon it from instructions. I
beg you would be pleased to consider whatever I may say as my private
sentiments; whether they will accord with those of my Sovereign, I am
not certain. At this great distance, I must use my best discretion in
all such extraordinary cases. I have no design to oppose myself to her
Majesty's pleasure, whatever that may be, but only to make some
observations upon the answer, that if they are of any weight, they may
be taken into consideration, as I have no doubt they will be. I would
beg to take this occasion to express the high respect, which the
United States entertain for her Imperial Majesty, and their sincere
desire to cultivate her friendship; that they considered her as one of
the first sovereigns of the world, and, in a manner, the great
legislator of nations by her system of neutrality, which they had
early highly applauded, and had made the principles of it the
invariable rules of their conduct during the war; that, animated with
sentiments of this kind, they wished to give some strong proofs of a
distinguished attention and consideration for her Majesty's person and
government. With this view, they had early named a Minister to reside
near her, as a compliment to the Sovereign who presided over the
Neutral Confederation with so much glory; that he might improve the
earliest occasion to display his character, which the course of events
should afford.
From these dispositions, they were naturally led to expect, as they
had intended, that her Imperial Majesty would be the first of the
neutral powers, which should receive a Minister from them; that as to
the objections, which had been made to my present reception, I begged
leave to observe, that the present mediation differed from the former
one, which had been tendered by their Imperial Majesties, in two
essential respects, that that was tendered during the continuance of
hostilities, and that there was a proposition in it, which materially
concerned the United States, but in this there was no question
relative to them; that their negotiations with Great Britain had been
conducted apart from those of the other belligerent powers, and were
brought to a happy conclusion. I here took up all the facts stated to
him in my second letter of the 21st instant, and enlarged upon them. I
added to them, the bill pending before the House of Commons in the
beginning of March, for regulating a commercial intercourse between
Great Britain and America, as between States, in fact, and absolutely
independent; and that the bill itself recited, that the King had
concluded a peace with them, and expressly declared the vessels of
their citizens should be admitted into all the ports of Great
Britain, as the vessels of other independent States; that all were
agreed to consider them as such. From these matters, I drew the same
conclusion as is mentioned in that letter.
This closed my observations upon the first article. As to the second,
I went over the reasons contained in my letter of the 22d instant to
you, urging strongly the four first, but passing gently over the rest.
Upon the third, it was to be observed, that the mode of expression
"before her Majesty had acknowledged the independence of America,"
seemed to lead beside the matter. That there was no question in the
acknowledgment of that independence. The only question was, whether
her Majesty would receive a Minister from the United States, who now
presents himself. The United States do not ask the acknowledgment of
their independence, nor have they a wish, nor do they claim a right to
impose their Minister upon any Sovereign. Every Sovereign will judge,
whether it is for the interest of his empire to receive the Minister
of another, and may do this without deciding upon the perfect rights
of that other. This is rather what I would have said, than what I did
say upon that point. I could not fully advance the idea, as he several
times prevented me, by returning to the matter he had before spoken
upon, as if he saw what I intended to say and wished to avoid it. The
fourth and last point was chiefly answered by the arguments used upon
the first. I did not, however, forget the distance of the countries as
the only probable cause of that delay.
Thus, Sir, I have given you a clear idea of a conference, which rests
wholly upon my memory, and which had continued an hour wanting a few
minutes, as far as I am able to do. Other arguments occurred to me in
the time, which might have been urged, but I was apprehensive of
obtruding too much upon the patience of the Vice Chancellor, whose
view it must be considered, was rather to communicate the answer, than
to discuss the points of it.
An important question arises out of this state of things. What remains
to be done on the part of the United States? It belongs to me only to
answer what I propose to do further myself, which is to draw a
memorial containing this answer, with such observations upon it as
shall occur to me, tending to show the futility of the objections,
which have been made to my immediate reception, and to send it to the
Vice Chancellor. To such a measure I am advised _on a good part_. If
this answer should be persisted in, I believe it may be truly said,
that the honor of the United States will not suffer by it, in the
estimation of any other Sovereign in the world. It is so different
from the line of conduct, which some of the powers, who are members of
the Neutral Confederation, have adopted already respecting the United
States, as for example, Portugal, Denmark, and Sweden, and that which
it has been intimated the Emperor was ready to adopt, (of which Mr
Adams received an account through Mr William Lee, and which he
immediately transmitted to me, and, probably, to Congress also) that,
if I mistake not, the effect of it will be quite of another kind. It
will be seen to be subversive of the very principles upon which it is
pretended to be established, and so revolting in its nature, that it
is utterly impossible the United States could ever comply with it.
I plainly told the Vice Chancellor, that for myself, I could never
make the proposition respecting my letters of credence; and that if I
should, I had no expectation they would ever adopt it, and, therefore,
my waiting here the length of time, which it would be necessary for me
to learn the pleasure of Congress upon it, seemed to be useless. I
cannot in any case quit this country till towards the end of May,
because there is no getting out of it before by land or water. I still
hope it will not be thought I have precipitated the measure at a time
when, if ever it could be, the course of events had prepared the way
for it, and when it shall be considered too, that the first objection
arises from a matter which took place since. As to the others, they
are of so strange a nature, that they could not have been expected by
any one, and which no time can do away.
I am under a necessity of closing this letter, without adding anything
which may attempt to account for this very unexpected conduct on the
part of her Imperial Majesty, otherwise I shall lose the post of the
day.
I have the honor to be, with much respect, &c.
FRANCIS DANA.
* * * * *
ROBERT R. LIVINGSTON TO FRANCIS DANA.
Philadelphia, May 1st, 1783.
Sir,