Page:Memoir, correspondence, and miscellanies, from the papers of Thomas Jefferson - Volume 1.djvu/312

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LETTER C.

TO JOHN JAY.

Paris, August 30, 1785. SIR,

I had the honor of writing to you on the 14th instant, by a Mr. Cannon of Connecticut, who was to sail in the packet. Since that date, yours of July the 13th has come to hand. The times for the sailing of the packets being somewhat deranged, I avail myself of a conveyance for the present, by the Mr. Fitzhughs of Virginia, who expect to land at Philadelphia.

I enclose you a correspondence which has taken place between the Marechal de Castries, minister of the Marine, and myself. It is on the subject of the prize money, due to the officers and crew of the Alliance, for prizes taken in Europe, under the command of Captain Jones. That officer has been here, under the direc tion of Congress, near two years, soliciting the liquidation and payment of that money. Infinite delays had retarded the liquida tion till the month of June. It was expected, when the liquidation was announced to be completed, that the money was to be re ceived. The M. de Castries doubted the authority of Cap tain Jones to receive it, and wrote to me for information. I wrote him the letter dated July the 10th, which seemed to clear away that difficulty. Another arose. A Mr. Puchilberg presented powers to receive the money. I wrote, then, the letter of August the 3rd, and received that of the M. de Castries, of August the 12th, acknowledging he was satisfied as to this difficulty, but announcing another ; to wit, that possibly some French subjects might have been on board the Alliance, and, therefore that Captain Jones ought to give security for the repayment of their portions. Captain Jones had before told me there was not a Frenchman on board that vessel, but the captain. I inquired of Mr. Barclay. He told me he was satisfied there was not one. Here then, was a mere possibility, a shadow of a right, opposed to a certain, to a substantial one which existed in the mass of the crew, and which was likely to be delayed ; for it was not to be expected that Cap tain Jones could, in a strange country, find the security required. These difficulties I suppose to have been conjured up, one after another, by Mr. Puchilberg, who wanted to get hold of the mo ney. I saw but one way to cut short these everlasting delays, which were ruining the officer soliciting the payment of the money, and keeping our seamen out of what they had hardly fought for,