But the tranfaction in which the lady was concerned, afforded the principal ground for that indignation and refentment expreffed by the Congrefs. This matter, as ftated by General Reed, went to a propofal of engaging the intereft of that gentleman in promoting the object of the commiffion, viz. a reunion between the two countries, in which event, he fhould receive an acknowledgment from government of ten thousand pounds terling; together with any office in his Majefty's gift in the colonies. To which, Mr. Reed, finding (as he fays) that an answer was expected, replied, that," he was not worth purchafing; but fuch as he was, the King of Great"Britain was not rich enough to " do it." The Congrefs ifAug. 11th. fued a declaration, 1778. including three refolutions, upon the fubject, which they fent by a flag to the British Commiffioners at New-York. The declaratory part contained a recital at length of thofe paffages in the letters which we have taken notice of, together with the particulars of the converfation which had paffed between Mrs. Ferguson, the lady in question, and General Reed. By the refolutions they determine, That the contents of the faid paragraphs, and the particulars in Reed's declaration, cannot but be confidered as direct attempts to corrupt and bribe the Congrefs of the United States of America. That, as they feel, fo they ought

any manner of correfpondence

or intercourfe with the faid "George Johnftone, Efq; efpe"cially to negociate with him upon affairs, in which the caufe "of liberty and virtue is inte"rested."

Thefe proceedings drew out an exceedingly angry and vehement declaration from the gentleman in queftion; in which, whatever fufficient caufe he had for indignation and refentment, the immediate operations of paffion were, perhaps, rather too apparent. Thofe perfons, and that body, which were lately held up as examples of virtue and patriotifm to all mankind, and whofe names feemed to be equalled with the most celebrated in antiquity; were now, not only found to be deftitute of every virtue under heaven; but were directly charged with being the betrayers and deftroyers of their country; with acting directly contrary to the fenfe and opinion of the people in general, and of facrificing their dearest interefts to the most unworthy and bafe motives; and with deluding their unhappy conftituents, and leading them blindfold to irretrievable ruin. After charging the Congrefs with forgetting every principle of virtue and liberty, it creates no furprize that he declares himself indifferent as to their good opinion; nor that their refolution was fo far from being a matter of offence to him, that he rather confidered it as a mark of diftinction.

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With

With refpect to the facts or charges ftated by the Congress, they are neither abfolutely denied, nor acknowledged, by Mr. Johnftone in this piece; he confequently does not enter into any juftification of his own conduct; but declares a refervation to himself of the li

berty, if he should think proper, of publishing, before he left Ame rica, such a juftification, against the afperfions thrown on his character. He also seems indirectly to deny the charge, by attributing the refolutions to the malice and treachery of the Congrefs, who intended them only for the purpofes of inflaming their wretched conftituents to endure all the calamities of war, and as a means for continuing their delufion, thereby to fruftrate all the good effects intended by the commiffion for the reftoration of tranquillity. But to defeat their purpofes in this refpect, he declared, that he should for the future decline acting as a commiffioner, or taking the fmalleft fhare in any bufinefs, whether of negociation or other, in which the Congress fhould be any way concerned. It may not be unneceffary here to obferve, that this gentleman afterwards abfolutely difowned the particular tranfaction with Mr. Reed.

The tone of this publication, accorded but badly with the high and flattering elogiums, which this gentleman had fo lately beftowed on the Americans, in thofe very letters which were the fubject of the prefent conteft. In one of thefe, to Mr. Dana, is the following remarkable paffage :-"If you "follow the example of Britain in "the hour of her pride, infolence,

and madnefs, and refufe to hear

J.

munity of which you was a 66 part. Such a conduct, as the "firft and fuperior of all human

duties, muft ever command my "warmest friendship and vene"ration."

This piece from the Congress alfo drew out a declaration in an

fwer from the other Commiffioners, viz. Lord Carlifle, Sir Henry Clinton, and Mr. Eden; which went to a total and folemn difavowal, fo far as related to the prefent fubject, of their having had any knowledge, directly or indirectly, of thofe matters fpecified by the Congrefs. They, however, took care at the fame time to guard effectually against any inference that might from thence be drawn, of their implying any affent to the conftruction put upon private correfpondence by the Congrefs; or of their intimating thereby a belief, that any person could have been authorized to hold the converfation ftated by that body. With refpect to the charges and refolutions, fo far as they related merely to their late brother commiffioner, they did

not

not think it neceffary, they faid, to enter into any explanation of the conduct of a gentleman, whofe abilities and integrity did not require their vindication. They however gave a teftimony from their own knowledge to the liberality of his general fentiments, and the fair and equitable principles upon which he had wifhed to restore the harmony, and to establish the union, between the Mother Country and the Colonies, on terms mutually beneficial.

But the great objects of this declaration, as well as of that iffued by Governor Johnftone, and of other former and fubfequent publications, were to defeat the effect of the French treaties, to controvert the authority of the Congrefs, with refpect to its acceptance or confirmation of them, and to render the conduct of that body fufpicious or odious to the people. For thefe purposes, having first laid it down as an incontrovertible fact, that an alliance with France was totally contrary to the interefts of America, and muft in its effects prove utterly fubverfive, both of her civil and religious rights, they then proceeded to demonftrate, that fhe was not bound in honour, nor tied down by any principle of public faith, to adhere to thofe treaties. In fupport of this doctrine, they endeavoured to eftablifh as proof, that the French conceffions owed their origin entirely to the conciliatory propofitions of Great Britain. For that being well aware of the returning union, felicity and ftrength, which the lenient conduct of the crown and parliament would immediately introduce throughout the

British Empire, the court of Verfailles, merely with a view of prolonging the troubles, and of rendering the Colonies inftruments to Gallic ambition and perfidy, fuddenly complied with thofe conditions, and figned thofe treaties, which he had before conftantly and difdainfully rejected.

They then proceeded to examine the validity of that fanction which thofe treaties were fuppofed to derive, from the confirmation which they had fince received in America; and endeavoured much to establish as a general doctrine and opinion, that the Congrefs had far exceeded their powers, both in that refpect, and in their laying down unreafonable and inadmiffible preliminaries, as an infuperable bar to their own propofed negociation, and to defeat, without hearing or deliberation, all the amicable purpofes of their miffion. They infifted, that the Congrefs were not authorized or warranted, by their own immediate conftitution, to take fuch decifive measures, and finally to pronounce upon queftions of fuch infinite and lafting importance, without recurring to the general fenfe of the people, and receiving the opinion and inftructions of their conftituents, after a full and open difcuffion of the different fubjects in their refpective affemblies.

Upon this ground, they pointed all their artillery directly againft the Congrefs; whom they charged with betraying the truft repofed in them by their conftituents, with acting contrary to the general fenfe of the people, and with facrificing their interefts

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and

and fafety, to their own ambitious views and interefted defigns. Indeed, however ftrange it may appear, there feems no doubt, that notwithstanding the repeated trials which the long continued, various, and extenfive operations of the war had feemed to afford, of the difpofition of the people in fo many Colonies, the Commiffioners themselves were fully perfuaded, that a vast majority of them were firmly attached to the British government, and totally adverse to the rebellion. It is, however, to be confidered, that all the information they could receive on the fubject, was through the medium of men, whofe minds were violently heated, by their sufferings, their loffes, their hopes, their loyalty, and undoubtedly in many inftances, by their private and party animofities.

The Congrefs, and those who wrote in their defence, and apparently with authority, controverted thefe pofitions, the inferences drawn from them, and the facts they were founded on. They first attacked the pofition which would naturally operate with moft force upon the minds and opinions of men, viz. that the conclufion of the French treaties was entirely owing to the conciliatory propofitions held out by the British parliament. This they afserted to be contradicted by facts and dates; and this point was ftrongly urged by the American popular writers, particularly Mr. Drayton, and the author of a celebrated publication, entitled, from the fignature, Common Senfe, who with great induftry pointed out to the public, the defectivenefs, incoherence, or contradic

tion of the evidence. But not fa tisfied with apparently gaining this point, they undertook to prove the direct reverse of the propofition, and pretended to fhew, that the British conceffions, inftead of being the caufe, were the immediate effect, of the French negociation and treaties. It was fhrewdly obferved in one of thefe publications, that the Commiffioners, who now totally denied that the Congrefs had any power or authority to conclude the French treaties, had themselves proposed to enter into a treaty with that very body; and that the uncommon chagrin and difappointment which they openly avowed upon meeting with a refufal, was a fufficient teftimony, how fully they were fatisfied of its competence to that purpose.

not

In refuting what they afferted as errors of fact on the part of the Commiffioners, fome of these writers did not fcruple to avail themfelves of the fame inftrument, and ' afferted things which were true, or which are at least highly improbable. Particularly, that to bribe the acquiefcence of France in the ruin of America, that power was offered a ceffion of fome confiderable part of our East India poffeffions, and the fame privileges and advantages on the Coast of Africa, which were enjoyed by the fubjects of England.

Although the Commiffioners did not expect that the facts or arguments ftated in their declarations, would produce any ferviceable effect in the conduct of the Congrefs, it was ftill hoped, that they would have operated powerfully upon the people at large. This fource of hope being alfo at length

exhausted, and the Commiffioners convinced by experience, that the defign of detaching any particular province, or large collective body of the people, fo far from the general union as to enter into a private or separate negociation, was as fruitless, as the attempt of opening a treaty with the Congrefs in -the name of the whole, had already proved ineffectual, determined totally to change their mode of conduct, and to denounce hoftility and deftruction, in their most terrific forms, to those who had rejected conciliation and friendship. The operations of terror might poffibly produce thofe effects, which the fmooth language of peace was found incapable of attaining: or, if the lofs of America was inevitable, it was determined to render it of as little value to its prefent and future poffeffors as poffible.

The partizans of the predatory fcheme in England, from whom this idea feems to be taken, afferted, that the nature of the country exposed it more to the ravage of fuch a war as was intended or threatened, than perhaps any other upon the face of the globe. Its vaft line of fea coaft was indefenfible by any poffible means, against the efforts of a fuperior marine, accompanied by fuch a moderate land force, as would be neceffary for the purposes of a defultory and exterminating war; and thofe numberless navigable creeks and rivers, which had in happier days conveyed commerce to every door, and fpread plenty, independence, and induftry, thro' every cottage, now afforded equal means and facility, for the carrying of fudden and inevitable de

ftruction, home to the most fequeftered fire-fide. The impracticability of evading the dangers arifing from fituation was farther increased, by that mode of living in fmall, open, fcattered towns and villages, which the nature and original circumstances of the country had prescribed to the inhabitants.

The Commiffioners Oct. 3d. accordingly iffued and 1778, publifhed that fignal valedictory manifefto and proclamation, which has fince been an object of so much difcuffion at home and abroad; and which has afforded a fubject, that was no lefs agitated in both Houfes of the British Parliament, than in the American Congress.

In that piece, they entered into a long recapitulation of facts and arguments which had been generally ftated in former declarations, relative to the French treaties, the conduct and views of the Congrefs, their criminal obstinacy in rejecting all propofals of accommodation, and their total incompetency, whether with respect to the conclufion of treaties on the one hand, or to their rejection on the other. With an enumeration of their own repeated endeavours for the restoration of tranquility and happiness to the people, and a review of the great advantages held out by the equitable and conciliatory propofitions which they had made, they announce their intention of speedily returning to England, as, under the circumstances of treatment and rejection which they had experienced, their longer ftay in America would be as inconfiftent with their own dignity, as with that of the authority which they re

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