The Connecticut courant, and the weekly intelligencer — Hartford [Conn.], 1778-08-04 00:00:00, page 2

Yf 7HA sis toe occasion of the present ill Bate of
7 7 our currency ? is a quefton which has been
aiked by thoufinds, and the answer has almost as
often been that it was owing to the practices of chir
pers, eagroiTen and dekies; and the conversation
has commonly ended in a declamation again! ex
torrien oppieffion, and the spirit of cuvetcufaefs :
Very few have gone so far as to enquire wry those
flippers have had an opportunity to pra& fe on its
more with paper than they had formerly with gold
and th ver : But if 6m a candid and fair trial it fh'ould
be found that the evil has arisen more from the ©if.
coa^A or erroneous condu& of our be! men. our.
Gongr^B and general atfmbliQs, than Lorn any other
fcurcc ; this Will not hill be an excuse forthe mal
plants oi those pelts of Society, whoie God only
is their pa n and who wilh to know no other prin
ci,ri;than fetch as increase their wealth.
Teat the quantity of caffi is much too greiit, is
an ob'/io -s dc^culty, but that this is not t^e princi
ple difficulty, is much touceuain Th erei- a real
doubt tn the minds of mol pe,!e wheher the bills
will be pa d, not whether thecontinent will be able,
but whether they will be honed enough to heepthew
pom so. A-d as long as this doubt remains, the
bills will ke^p flowing poorer and poo eg till they
are led till that fatal hour when pubic credo shall
be no more; when those who have trufed the p-b
li r LI h:ve I.i tbeir property ; those who have
b .: . to weak a, to fappofe they were bound by the
la vs of the It d and tueir duty as good citizens to
take the continental bills in payment will be ruin
ed and thof woo have refufed to take them or to
trill th> public will have-enrichedtbemfe'ves at the
expjnce of died.neighbours. We fhaii then have a
debeffing war on our hands- Jan army to whom we
Live p/omiled andmuft pay amazing fams of mo
ney ; no: a man on the continent who can believe
our ,omifes ofpuyment. or will credit the public
one ihilhng; no paper Mils nor in our pdwer to
mike any and perhaps not gold and silver enough
to pay the pu ; lie expence of five days.
Bi if the di rids that this step would reduce U 9
to was the only HI co -Sequence it might be aimoft
tolerable; the infamy surely none would tear. All
the world are now Giving who (hall m /ft rep.A the
vr ue and court the friendfh pof America. They
will t; mi find an infant fra^e almost at its birth to
have defrauded their arwy defrauded the r own
inhabitants defrauded drawers and dece ved all
mankind : And if the prmc-pal cause of toe ill and
depreciating hue of our cmrency. is that the pdo
pedoubt the honesty of die continent: Tais metft
ar fe from the ill to. duel or erronicas coaduß of
those who nave the management of our cred.t in tber
han'ds. In Givat-Briram the people wit «.le.fi honest
characters as id v-d als. infinitely less able to pay,
and almost infer ey more in debt have been able
to keep their cred । almost on an equal footing with
go'd. This they have dme by centide-ing ther
engagements as lucre 1 ; making no prorones which
they do not fee a method to perform and by nevir
le ting demands co unanfive/ed.
Ws have rink curs by a praA'cedireAly Contra
ry. We have made b/ht account of public faith ,
we h'v'e had an opp fltnwy'to make but few pub
lic promises, a .dt e people fee ng way -prided for
the performance cfmN ofehtin, end or the refi too
many are tfr'? hr bore.
A purincan have very little dependence on the
prem fes cf money from that purple who at onetime
put all the gold and silver t' ey had out of their
hands and thereby pat it out of ts e : r power so pay
the bills emitted la! war; at another time ordered a
while cm5 &< n of bills to circufa e for a year after
they were payable; At another t me Bruck all t eir,
circulating bills which wee emitted as caffi and
rn- Iva legal tendre out of circula ton; obliged the
hoi lers of bbls, (many of which ought to have been
p? d years ago) to take the treasurers note for their
money, pa- able in one year, for which no provision
is made, nor do either the people or the leg-Nature
expert they will be paid. At another time borrow
edrivent, 'wo thousand pounds on notes which
are now payable and not one sh lling of money pro
vireTo pay them. But why enumerate particulars
ofour infamy ? when during t^e whole course of
this war this people have been ufi.ig promises, threats
and companion to induce their inhabi ants to trust
them, for which there are orders on their treasurer
for mere than an hundred thousand pounds,unart.
levered, and it is totally ont of the power of their
Lederer to answer any one of them.
Let the members of the lad aTembly try to ex
rufe thenafeh/es torh-dr C.d anl to their country
for having fe : n public faith pledged for near five
hundred thousand pounds, and totally neglecting to
p de any means to f&ii/h one h r -ls that sum to
A COUNTSIWAN,
x- ti:Q vuwr,nvlsvvi vvexANi.
To the PRI NiER3.
IN our march through N^w Jersey, it was beyond
defcripiion proofing to fee the upiverfal joy .hat
fat. on every countenance. The inhabitants vied
whh eath other in rendering the army every possible
frvice. As we phLd the farm houses the buck
fome country laff&s flood ready at the door with their
milk pails filled with milk ana water, to which we
weie welcome. Poultry roots and vegetables were
fold u- at reasonable prices. --Flow different is the
conduct of the people of this State, who are engraf
ting for ehpotat on all the roo s and vegetables that
can be procured ! I am willing jo believe feme
of those who have lately bought Onions for expor
tation did net-know they wore wanted and engaged
for the army ; and have no doubt, when they are
in'orm.d thafthofe brave fellows who are in arms
for the defence of their country have occasion for
them, they will reidily part with them———if
not !
A SOLDIER just coxa brom Camp.
Hartford, Auguit t, 1778. -
Ln CONGRESS, July iB, 7778.
A LETTER finned Carhfle, H. Clinton, Wm.
Elen, G o. JobhOone aated New York July
11,1778 arid directed ' To his Excellency Henry
Lau-re s, t eP-etident, and others the Members of
Congress " wa receved and read, whereupon Con
gress came to the following refolatioH.
Whereas Congress in a letter to the Brit^fh Com
rui ffioners of the lyth ofJuce last d.'d declare that
tl ey would be rerdy to enter upon the confiderrion
of a trea'y of peace and commerce, not inconfident
with treaties already subsisting when the King of
Great Britain Should deinoaitra e a fi acere ddpffiti
on for that purpose ; and that the only solid prpof
of this dip )fition, would be an explicit acknowiedg
mintof the Ind pendence of th Spates, or with
drawing his ilems and armies: A. whereas, nei
ther of tnefe dke^wves have been < .pled with;
therefore,
Resolved That no answer be giran tc he letter
of the 11 h infant froffl t. e British C.mmifeantrs.
Ordered That the said ,'*% and the foregoing
refoliation he pubbfhed. Ex rad fchm the Minutes,
CHARLES THOM?'ON. Secretary.
The letter from tne Builh Comm.ffioners is as
fallows.
To his Excellency HENRY LAURENS, the Prefl
dent and other tLe Members of Curigrefs,
GentFemen.
WB received soon a'ter our arrival at this place,
your anfv'ef to ohr letter of the lOrh of June;
and are fo-ry to find on your part any difficulties
railed which mufl prolong the calamities of the pre
fect war.
You propose to us as matter of choice one or other
oftwo alternatives, which you date as preliminaries
nect ffary even to the beginning of a negociation for
peace •© this empire.
One is an explicit acknowledgment of the Inde
pendence. of thcASts e<. We a.e not inclined to
d spite with you about the meaning cf wbid> : But
so far as yna mean the entire puvlege cftin people
ofNorth America to difooeftheir p s o< c:%, aid
to ~<.ve r n t'-ernf.jves w/tao ta ty reference 0 Great
Britain beyond w-at is neceff-try to prelLve that
union of force, in whth chr mutual fafety and ad
vantage consist : We thi ik, that fa fa, their Inde
pendenc -ir fully .acknowledged nthe terms of our
letter of the rod of Juno And weaie will ng to
eater upch aft ^'yffion w- h yen, of ^ll the cir
cuinftances that m^ r-ceffhry to ertfure or even
to enlarge that Indepic. c%
Lithe other alterra.ivgy u „op:fe that his Ma
jefly fhoAd withdraw Irs fleet, '.his armies.
Although "have ncidnubr of hi; Maiefly's dif
jinfi ion toiemovv t ^ry LbeA of uneasiness from
rhe colonies 'yet these --.recucum Lirces of precauti
on against our engiente emie swh ch oriiod to the
reard thatmuft he paid so the iafey of many who.
from ass &'on to Great Britain haVe e^pefed them
felve- te fuff r in this contest and to whom G-eat-
Britain owe support a every expence of Mood and
tieafute that will not allow us to begin with this
measure. How Joon it may follow the sirs l advances
of peace cm your p^rt. w-11 depend on the favorable
profpe& you give of a feconcil arion wih your fel
low citizens of this Continent and with those in Bri
tain, In themean t ; rre we assure you that no eif
cumftince will give us mere fatisfia-on, than '0 find
that the extent cf our future connexion is to be de
termined oi iprinciples of mere reafnh and the Corfi
derations of mutual intend on which we are Wil
ling likewise to rest tha permanency of any arrange
ments we may form.
In making these declarations we db not wait for
the d^ifion cf any military events. Having deter
mmed our judgment by What we believe to be the
interest of onr country, we Bull abids by the deck
rations we row make in every puhbie Situation of
•ur affairs
You refer to treaties already subsisting but are
priaf-d te withhold from us any parocular iafuinu
tion in relpc& to their nature or tendency.
If they are in any degree to affect our deiiberati.
bus we think that you cannot refufea full commu
nication cf the particulars in which they consist,
both for our consideration and that of yourown eca.
ftituents, who are tojudge between us whether any
alliance you may have contra&ed be a fu fficient ica.
son for continuing this unnatural war. We bk,
wiie think ourselves entituled to a full communica
tion of the powers by which ,ou conceive" outfeivea
^thorifed to make treaties with foreign nations.
And we are led to al heisfaaion on this point,
because we have obfarved in your pwpofed article#
of confederation, No. 6 and 9, it is La ed that you
.sh u.d have the power ol entering into treaties and
alliances under certain feftfi.6Bn herein fpecified,
yet we do not find promulga ed any da cr resoluti
on of the Ailemßy's of particular States conferring
this power on you.,
As we have communicated our powers to you,
we mean to proceed without reserve in this bufl
nefs, we,will not suppose that any ob cation can
arise on your part to our cemraunicarihg to the pub*
lic.fo much of your correspondence as may be nocef
firy to explain our own proceedings. At the fame
time we allure you that an all such publications,
tie refpea wi ich we pay to the great body of peo.
p'e you are frippofed to rep efent, shall be evidenced,
by us in eve y possible mark .of confderailon and
regard
Weare- vy th perfect refpe& Gentlemen, your moQ
obedient and tuoft horrible servants.
Carlisle.
H. CLINTON,
Wm.EDEN
GEO. JOHNSTONE
Neip F^, July trth I'7B.
Fu fh:d by cidu of Copgrefs.
CHARLES THOMPSON, Secretary^
To the Earl br CARLISLE.
Mv LORD,
AS you inconjunßion with ycur brother Corn-'
m ffiuners have thought proper to make one
more truitleis ne,oratory eßay permit me through
your lore ft p, once more to addre6 the brotherhood.
I s certamb to be lamented that gentlemen io ac
corip) ihed fhouid be fj unfortunate. Particularly,
my Lo?d, it is to be regrettea that you fhouid be
ra,nd ^p as t etophooe to a pyramid of blunders.
Or i w ^ iff of America I have to intreat that you
will pardon ti er C^hgrefs for any want of pblitenefs
so not a:\veriiig your letter. You rrty remembers
that in their lad letter they. Bated certain terms as
p.erirhmare to a negotiation. And lam fore your
lordfbip's candbur will do them the justice to ac
knowledge they are not apt to tread back the steps
tiiey have taken In addition to this it so happens
that they are at prelent very indifferent whether or
not your Kng and Parliament acknowledge their
independence; and ftilLmore indifferent as to with,
drawing bus fleets and armies.
You mistake the matter exceedingly when you fcp
poie that any pef son in America wiffies to prolong
the calamities of war. No my Lord, we have had
en )ugh of them in all conference. But the fault lies
with you or your master, cr fomeof the people he
has about him. Congress, when Sir William Howe
lauded on Staten Inland met him with their pecla
ratibn of Independence. They adhered to it in the
rhoft perilous circumfiances. The" put their lives
upon the issue; nay their honour. New in the name
of common sense, how can you suppose they will
relinquish this .object in the prelent moment ?
I am fully of your lordship's opinion when you.
de< line any depute with Corgrefs about the mean
^R 01 the term Independence. They would have
infinite advantage ever you logically, but what ig
Worse they are politically in capacity to put upon
the term lift what conftru&ion they please : Nay,
soy lord eventually Great-Britain mu& acknov. ledge
juR such an Independence as Con,refs think p r &
per ; the, arc now in the full possession and enjey
hient of it How idle in yen to talk of infuiing
or enlarging what is out cf your power and cannot
be eucruufed
You give two reasons for not withdrawing ycur
Be -ai d armies The firfl is that you keep them
here by way of precaurio- ngainft ,nr ancient er-e
----raies. Really my tod 4 wa= at a less for feme
time to comprehend the force of this reasoning, or
how a body cf men in this country and a large Beet,
could p ote& you against an invasion from France.
And lam even pew perhaps miftahen when I fefr