Yesterday Collo: Ogden arrived with the originals, of what we had before received in Duplicates by Capn: Barney. The Ratification of the Dutch Treaty had been before recd. & exchanged.2 The Ratification of Their High-Mightinesses is in the safe Custody of Mr: Dumas at present, at the Hague.—

I believe we shall accept of the mediation of the two Imperial Courts at the Definitive Treaty, as it is a mere formality—a mere Compliment, consisting wholly in the Imperial Ministers putting their names & Seals to the parchment, & can have no ill effect. The 107Inclination of the C. de Vergennes seems to be that we should accept it, and as he calls upon us to decide, in the Affirmative or Negative, I believe we shall give an answer in the affirmative—

The Empress has promised to receive Mr: Dana, as soon as the Definitive Treaty shall be signed, & he has prepared a Treaty of Commerce, wh: will be valuable if he can obtain it—3

The Emperor of Germany has caused to be intimated, several ways, his inclination to have a Treaty of Commerce with us; but his rank is so high, that his House never makes the first formal advance. I shd. think it adviseable that we should have a Treaty with that Power for several reasons.

1st. Because, as Emperor of Germany, and King of Bohemia & Hungary, he is at the head of one of the greatest Interests & most powerfull Connections in Europe— It is true, it is the greatest weight in the Scale, which is & has been fm. age to age, opposite to the House of Bourbon. But for this very reason, if there were no other, the United-States ought to have a Treaty of Commerce with it, in order to be in practice with their Theory, and to shew to all the world that their system of Commerce embraces, equally & impartially, all the Commercial States & Countries of Europe—

2.dly. Because the present Emperor is one of the greatest men of this Age. The wisdom & virtue of the man, as well as of the Monarch; his personal Activity, Intelligence & accomplishments; his large & liberal principles, in matters of religion, Government & Commerce, are so much of kin to those of our States—perhaps indeed so much borrowed from them, & adopted in imitation of them, that it seems peculiarly proper we shd. shew this respect to them.—

3dly: Because that, if England should ever forget herself again so much as to attack us, she may not be so likely to obtain the Alliance or Assistance of this Power against us. A Friendship, once established in a Treaty of Commerce, this Power will never be likely to violate, because she has no Dominions near us, & can have no Interest to quarrel with us.—

4thly. Because the Countries, belonging to this Power upon the Adriatic Sea, & in the Austrian Flanders, are no inconsiderable Sources of Commerce for America— And, if the present negotiations, between the two Imperial Courts, & the Porte, should terminate in a free Navigation of the Danube, the Black Sea, & the Archipelago, the Emperor’s hereditary Dominions will become very respectable Commercial Countries.—

5thly. Because, altho’ we have at present a pleasant & joyfull 108prospect of friendship & uninterrupted Alliance with the House of Bourbon, which I wish may never be obscured, yet this friendship & Alliance will be the more likely to continue unimpaired for our having the friendship & Commerce of the House of Austria: And (as in the vicissitudes of human affairs all things are possible) if in future times—however unlikely at present—the House of Bourbon should deal unjustly by us, demand of us things we are not bound to perform, or any way injure us, we may find in the Alliance of Austria, England and Holland a resource against the Storm. Supernumerary Strings to our Bow & provisions against possible Inconveniences, however improbable, can do us no harm.—

If we were not straitened for money, I should advise Congress to send a Minister to Vienna: But as every mission abroad is a costly Article, & we find it difficult at present to procure money for the most necessary purposes, I should think it proper for Congress to send a Commission to their Minister at Versailles, London, Madrid, Petersbourg or the Hague, who might communicate it to the Court of Vienna, by means of the Imperial Ambassador. The Emperor in such Case wd. authorise his Ambassador at that Court to prepare & conclude a Treaty, and in this way the business may be well done without any additional expence.—

Mr: Favie, Chargé des Affaires of the Grand Duke of Tuscany, the Emperor’s Brother, has called upon me so often to converse with me upon this Subject, that I doubt not he has been employed, or at least knows it will be agreable to his Court & their Connections, altho’ he has never made any Official insinuations about it.— This Gentleman has been employed by the Republic of Ragusa to consult American Ministers upon the subject of Commerce too. I have told him the American Ports were open to the Ragusan Vessells, as well as all others, and have given him the address, by which they propose to write to Congress.4

I have the honor to be, Sir, / Your huml: Servt:

The United States of America have propagated far & wide in Europe the Ideas of the Liberty of Navigation and Commerce. The Powers of Europe, however, cannot agree as yet, in adopting them in their full extent. Each one desires to maintain the exclusive dominion of some particular Sea, or River, and yet to enjoy the liberty of navigating all others. Great Britain wishes to preserve the exclusive dominion of the British Seas, & at the same time to obtain of the Dutch a free Navigation of all the Seas in the East Indies. France has contended for the free use of the British and American Seas, yet She wishes to maintain the Turks in their exclusive dominion of the Black Sea, and of the Danube, which flows into it thro’ some of their Provinces, and of the Communication between the Black Sea & the Archipelago, by the Dardanelles. Russia aims at the free Navigation of the Black Sea, the Danube, and the Passage by the Dardanelles, yet She contends that the Nations, which border on the Baltic, have a right to controul the Navigation of it. Denmark claims the Command of the Passage of the Sound, and by the late Marine Treaty, between the Neutral Powers, it was agreed that the Privateers of all the belligerent Powers should be excluded from the Baltic.2 France and Spain too begin to talk of an exclusive Dominion of the Mediterranean, and of excluding the Russian Fleet from it, or at least France is said to have menaced Russia with a Fleet of Observation in the Mediterranean, to protect her Commerce to the trading Sea Port Towns of the Levant— But as England possesses Gibraltar, and the Emperor of Morocco the other Side of the Straights, France & Spain cannot command the Entrance, so that it will be difficult for them to support their pretensions to any exclusive dominion of the Mediterranean, upon the Principle, on which the Northern Powers claim that of the Baltic, and the Porte, the Passage of the Dardanelles.

France at present enjoys a large Share of the Trade to the Levant. England has enjoyed a share too, and wishes no doubt to revive it. The Emperor & Empress, if they succeed in their Views of throwing 110open the Danube, Black Sea and Archipelago, will take away from France and England a great part of this Trade— But it is not likely that England will join with France in any opposition to the Emperor and Empress.

In order to judge of the Object, which the two Empires have in view, we should look a little into the Geography of those Countries.

The Project of setting at liberty the whole Country of ancient Greece, Macedonia & Illiricum, & erecting independent Republicks in those famous Seats, however splendid it may appear in Speculation, is not likely to be seriously entertained by the two Empires, because it is impracticable. The Greeks of this day, altho’ they are said to have Imagination & Ingenuity, are corrupted in their Morals to such a degree, as to be a faithless perfidious Race, destitute of Courage, as well as of those principles of Honor and Virtue, without which a Nation can have no Confidence in one another, nor be trusted by others.

The Project, of conquering the Provinces of Albany, Romelia, Valachia, Moldavia & little Tartary from the Turks, & dividing them between the two Empires, may be more probable—3 But the Turks in Asia & Europe together are very powerful, and, if thoroughly awakened, might make a great resistance: So that it is most probable the two Imperial Courts would be content, if they could obtain by Negociation, or by Arms, the free Navigation of the Danube, Black Sea and Archipelago. This freedom alone would produce a great Revolution in the Commerce of Europe. The River Don or Tanais, with its Branches, flows through the Ukraine, and a considerable part of the Russian Dominions, into the Black Sea. The Danube flows very near Trieste, thro’ the Kingdom of Hungary & then thro’ a Turkish province, into the Black Sea. If therefore the Black Sea and the Danube only were free, a Communication would be immediately opened between Russia & Hungary, quite to Trieste, to the great Advantage of both Empires— But if at the same time the Passage of the Dardanelles was laid open, all the Levant Trade would be opened to the two Empires, and might be carried to Trieste, either by the Danube, or thro’ the Archipelago and the Gulph of Venice. This would be such an Accession of Wealth, Commerce and Naval Power to the two Empires, as France is jealous of, & may be drawn into a War to prevent. It is a question, how the King of Prussia will act. It is the general Opinion, that as he is advanced in Years, loves and enjoys his Laurels and his Ease, and cannot hope to gain any thing by War, he will be neuter. If he is, the Issue cannot be 111foreseen. The Emperor is vastly powerful, and his Preparations are immense. Perhaps France may not think it prudent to declare War. I should be sorry to see her again involved in a War, especially against the Principles She has lately espoused with so much Glory and Advantage.

For my own part, I think Nature wiser than all the Courts and States in the World, & therefore I wish all her Seas & Rivers upon the whole Globe free, & am not at all surprised at the desire of the two Empires to set those near them at liberty.

I think, however, that whatever turn these Negociations may take, they cannot directly affect Us, altho’ we may be remotely interested in the freedom of the Levant Trade, and of the Seas and Rivers in the Neighbourhood of it.

I have the honor to be, with great Esteem & / Respect, / Sir, your most obedient & / most humble Servant