Papers of John Adams, volume 14
I have this day received by Captain Barney in a Short Passage from Philadelphia, the Ratifications of our Contracts, which are all here inclosed ten in Number,1 together with two Letters for you and one Packet and one Letter for Mr Dumas, which I pray you to transmit him with my Respects.2
Let me beg of you, Gentlemen to encourage and promote our Loan by all fair and reasonable Means, and transmit to Congress, and to me the State of it, as often as may be convenient.
Our new Connection has given great Pleasure in America, and the Time cannot be far off, when We Shall be in a Condition to pay all our Interests without Difficulty.
With great Regard, I have the Honour to be &c
I have taken out the Letters the Packet to Mr Dumas remains.
LbC (Adams Papers); internal address: “Messrs Wilhem and Jan Willink / Nicholas and Jacob Van Staphorst / and De la Lande and Fynje”; APM Reel 108.
That is, two ratified sets of five contracts, each contract for one million florins.
Congress ratified the Dutch loan on 14 Sept., and the ratified contracts were enclosed with Livingston's letter of 15 Sept. (vol. 13:465–468), to which
JA replied on 6 Nov., below. The letters to the consortium likely included Livingston's of 15 Sept., which served as a cover letter for the contracts, and Robert Morris’ two letters of 24 Sept. (PCC, No. 118, f. 296–297; Morris, Papers
, 6:427–428). For Morris’ letters, see the Willinks’ letter of 14 Nov. and the consortium's reply of the 15th, both below. The letters to Dumas probably were Livingston's of 5 and 12 Sept. (Wharton, Dipl. Corr. Amer. Rev.
, 5:698–699, 724–725).