297
years ago. This was, to undertake to ask an order from Con gress, for the payment of any French claimants by their banker in Paris ; and, in the mean time, to undertake to order such payment, should any such claimant prove his title, before the pleasure of Congress should be made known to me. I consulted with Mr. Barclay, who seemed satisfied I might venture this undertaking, because no such claim could be presented. I therefore wrote the letter of August the 17th, and received that of August the 26th, finally closing this tedious business. Should what I have done, not meet the approbation of Congress, I would pray their immediate sense, because it is not probable that the whole of this money will be paid so hastily, but that their orders may arrive in time, to stop a sufficiency for any French claimants who may possibly exist. The following paragraph of a letter from Captain Jones, dated L Orient, August the 25th, 1785, further satisfies me, that my un dertaking amounted to nothing in fact. He says, l It is impossible that any legal demands should be made on you for French subjects, in consequence of your engagement to the Marechal. The Alli ance was manned in America, and I never heard of any persons having served on board that frigate, who had been born in France, except the captain, who, as I was informed, had, in America, ab jured the church of Rome, and been naturalized. Should Con gress approve what I have done, I will then ask their resolution for the payment, by their banker here, of any such claims as may be properly authenticated, and will moreover pray of you an au thentic roll of the crew of the Alliance, with the sums to be al lowed to each person ; on the subject of which roll, Captain Jones, in the letter above mentioned, says, 1 1 carried a set of the rolls with me to America, and before I embarked in the French fleet at Boston, I put them into the hands of Mr. Secretary Livingston, and they were sealed up among the papers of his office, when I left America. I think it possible that Mr. Puchilberg may excite claims. Should any name be offered which shall not be found on the roll, it will be a sufficient disproof of the pretension. Should it be found on the roll, it will remain to prove the identity of per son, and to inquire if payment may not have been made in Ame rica. I conjecture, from the journals of Congress of June the 2nd, that Landais, who, I believe, was the captain, may be in America. As his portion of prize money may be considerable, I hope it will be settled in America, where only it can be known whether any advances have been made him.
The person at the head of the post office here, says, he pro posed to Dr. Franklin a convention to facilitate the passage of let ters through their office and ours, and that he delivered a draught VOL. i. 38
