Papers of John Adams, volume 14
e.Avril 1783
Nous savons ici, par Lettres de Hambourg du 25 du passé, que Mr. Votre fils, après S’y être arrêté quelques jours, en étoit reparti le 23.1
Voici des Lettres Américaines venues par la poste d’Angleterre. Celle de Mr. Guild S’est trouvée dans un paquet entierement usé & 382
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383
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384ouvert d’un côté. Il contenoit deux brochures: Letter to the Abbé Raynal by Th s. Payne, & Catalogus eorum qui in Universitate Harvardiana Cantabrigiæ in Rep. Massach si. ab año 1642 ad an. 1782 alicujus gradus laurea donati sunt.
2 J’ai cru devoir déposer ces deux pieces dans votre Secretaire, & vous envoyer Seulement la Lettre.3
A certain face you would not meet in a wood, you will meet it, with his influenza in the future Congress of final pacification, at which I am assured he is appointed to assist. I Sat next him yesterday at the F. Ambassador's, who gave a Diplomatic Dinner.4 We were much talkative together about the several climates of Russia nearly corresponding with those of our States, and the extensiveness of both, about Kamtschatka, Capt. Cook, the Caspian Sea and Mount Caucase, which he told me he went through. There, said I, you may possibly have traaden on some of the Steps of Alexander the great. He Smiled, and I too, fancying him horded, when there, with the modern Hircanians, so formidable to Caravans.5
Je Suis avec grand respect, De Votre Exce. / le très-humble & très / obéissant serviteur
Translation
We know by letters from Hamburg of 25 March that your son, after staying there for some days, departed on the 23d.1
Here are some American letters that came via the post from England. The one from Mr. Guild was in a very tattered parcel, open along one side. It contained two pamphlets: Letter to the Abbé Raynal by Thomas Paine, and Catalogus eorum qui in Universitate Harvardiana Cantabrigiæ in Rep. Massachsi. Ab anno 1642 ad an. 1782 alicujus gradus laurea donati sunt.
2 I thought I should place these two pieces in your writing desk, and send only the letter.3
A certain face you would not meet in a wood, you will meet it, with his influenza in the future Congress of final pacification, at which I am assured he is appointed to assist. I Sat next him yesterday at the F. Ambassador's, who gave a Diplomatic Dinner.4 We were much talkative together about the several climates of Russia nearly corresponding with those of our States, and the extensiveness of both, about Kamtschatka, Capt. Cook, the Caspian Sea and Mount Caucase, which he told me he went through. There, said I, you may possibly have traaden on some of the Steps of Alexander the great. He Smiled, and I too, fancying him horded, when there, with the modern Hircanians, so formidable to Caravans.5
I am with great respect, your excellency's very humble and very obedient servant
RC (Adams Papers); internal address: “Paris à Son Excellence Mr. Adams M. P.”
In fact, JQA left Hamburg on 5 April (JQA, Diary
, 1:174).
For the publications sent by Guild, see his letter of 28 Nov. 1782, and note 7, above, but Dumas is probably here referring to Guild's letter of 3 Dec., above, and the cover letter for the pamphlets dated the 7th (Adams Papers), for which see JA's letter to Guild of 9 April, and note 1, below.
Dumas wrote the following paragraph in English and it has been inserted verbatim into the English translation.
Dumas’ conversation at the French ambassador's dinner was with Arkady Markov, special Russian envoy to the Netherlands. In the summer of 1782 JA had a humorous exchange with the Russian centering on the similarity between the words “influenza” and “influence” (vol. 13:422, 424–425). In March, Catherine II had renewed the Austro-Russian mediation proposal, with the negotiations for the general peace to be held at Paris rather than, as previously intended, at Vienna. Markov was to join the Russian minister to France, Ivan Sergeevich Bariatinskii, for the negotiations (De Madariaga, Armed Neutrality of 1780
, p. 433;
U.S. and Russia
, p. 183).
The Hyrcanians were the inhabitants of a region of ancient Persia located southeast of the Caspian Sea.