I have the honor of returning to you the letter of Mr. J. Q. Adams.1 It is one among the many proofs of his attention, penetration and fitness for his present functions; which I feel a sincere pleasure in announcing on all proper occasions. The President desires me to present his acknowledgments to you for the communication.

It will be agreeable to you to learn, that no intelligence from Amsterdam gives the least reason to expect, that your sons will be placed in any jeopardy by the late catastrophe in Holland; and that our instructions do not require the minister at the Hague to incur the smallest personal danger.

If you are not a subscriber to Bache’s scandalous chronicle,2 it may be a subject of momentary Amusement to be now informed, that it is filled with discussions on the treaty; not one word of which, I believe, is known thro’ a regular channel to any person here, but the President and myself.

I have the honor to be / with great respect, dear sir / Sincerely yours

A conviction of your goodness, induces me to address you on a subject that nearly interests me.—

You have done me the honor, to listen to my unfortunate tale, when I was last in Philadelphia, and may possibly recollect that the only property I was able to save from the wreck of my affairs, was an acknowledgment from the Government of Hispaniola that they owed me 55 or 60,000 livres Currency, for provisions furnish’d them at Cash price.—

I am now induced to address Mr. Monroe, at the Court of france, on the subject and shall forward him the necessary papers; but as I am not particularly acquainted with that Gentleman, I am induced to request you wou’d favor me with a line to him, shewing that pretensions are founded on the grounds of justice, & integrity, and that I am a sufferer by the destructin of the Island of St. Domingue.—1

Begging permission to request an answer as soon as possible, and your pardon for makg. use of an amanuensis, / I am, with sentiments of the utmost respect, / Sir, / Your very Huml Servt.

I am honoured with your letter of this date, and am highly flattered by your expressions of approbation on my book called the history of the district of maine.1 I should have not imposed the task of that work on myself, with my other avocations, if I could have procured any other person to undertake it.

I have attended to your remark on the sentiment in page 299: and should be exceedingly greived if any thing had escaped my pen which 390 should hurt your feelings, or give you the least uneasiness: for in addition to the respect I have for your character, I intended to write that book, and thought I had written it in such a manner, as not to deserve a place in any political side, and in such a manner as would not hurt the feelings of any man in united America. I must however confess, that when I wrote the sentiment which you particuliarly notice, I had in my mind the description of the fate of Marcellus and others, as contained in your defence of the constitutions of the United States. I am not possessed of health to mention any more instances if it was necessary. Perhaps the expression “A multitude of instances” is too strong. The words “without intention to prove &c” were only intended as an assertion that the learned writer did not write with a purpose to prove the fact, evidence of which incidentally opened from the facts he mentioned in order to complete his work. My own sentiments were as freely given on the subject, that patriotism and Valour have been rewarded with calumny and disgrace in nearly all the governments of the past ages: but we have reason to hope from the degree of light and information possessed by the people of this country, and the many singular advantages which our people possess that it will not be so here.

I am Sir with great respect / and friendship Your Most / obedient and Most humble / Servant