Absent from The Hague since late Oct. 1782, JA returned there on this day, and after two weeks of discussions with his Patriot friends at The Hague and merchants and bankers in Amsterdam, he departed for Paris with JQA. JA thought his stay in Europe would end shortly after negotiations with Great Britain were completed, and he wanted his son to come with him and serve as his secretary during the interim (JA, Diary and Autobiography , 3:141–142; Book of Abigail and John , p. 360–362).