Mr. John Churchman of This City Thinks he has Discover’d a Method by Which the Longitude at Sea or Land may be Ascertaind. by one Simple Observation in Any part of The World,2 & Which is certainly Very Easy if the Great fact on which the whole depends can be well Ascertain’d, & Which I think not Improbable, ’tis this, Viz that the Magnectic needle has two poles one north 13.°56′ from the N. Pole of the Earth the other South, abt. 18.o from the S. Pole of the Earth, Which Poles have a Constant Rotation from West to East, & form their Revolutions in 463 Years, & 344 days i.e. abt. 47′ 91 Minutes of a degree in a Year, that the True place of these poles may be Ascertain’d, & Tables of the Same calculated for Every Given Minute of Time, & of Course that the line or point of no Variation for Any place & the Time, may be Easily found, & of Course the Angle of Variation & Radius will always be Attainable, & the Difference of Latitude of the place of observation & that of the Magnetic Pole will be one Side of the Triangle Necessary to be found,— he further Tells me that by a Long Attention to Halley’s Theory of the Magnet, & the various Observations of Cook & many other Navigators in their Very Long Voiages, & by comparing them all together, it Appears that the Lines of Variation When continued on the Globe from Whatever part of the Earth Never fail to Meet at the same place or Point Where the pole of the Magnet by his Tables was found to be at the times of Observation,— This is A Matter of Such Weighty consequence, & the Truth or falsehood of his plan or Method may be so Easily Examin’d that I think it will work a Very carefull Attention & Enquiry, & the Author is undoubtedly intitled to the honours & Rewards of the Discovery, if his Great fact is found True on Sufficient proof, Mr Churchman is a Young man of Good Character, of a Good Country Education but Not a Genl. Acquaintance with any course of Liberal Learning, At his Desire I hereby Recomend him & his plan (Wc. he Sends to You,) to Your favorable Notice & Patronage— I have Nothing New or Important to inform You but the Convention of the States Are now Sitting here, with a View to mend our Articles of Confederation or form a New System, Which perhaps is much Easiest of the Two, but how they will succeed God knows, our confusions Are Very Great,

I have the honour to be / Hond. Sir. / with all Esteem & Respect / Your most Obedt. / & very huml servt.

I received your frindley and obliging Letter at Amsterdam and was very Sory that I could not, by returning through Leyden, have the Pleasure of an Interiew with you.2 I had the Stronger Motive to desire it. as I wished to see the Remarks you have made upon the Defence &c When you, calld that Work the Breviary of geneuine Republican Principels, compatible3 with the nature of Society4 and with Liberty, Safety and good order, you made it, the greatest Compliment that ever was made it, and you fully expressed the objects, Which the Writer had in View however imperfectly or meanly he may have executed his Intentions.—

I wish you would publish your observations upon it. for it is Truth alone, that is sought. But if you have any Reasons against publishing5 them I should be much obliged to you for a Copy of them, the Subject is interesting to Mankind, and there is now Such an Effort, in France, Holland, Ireland, the Austrian Netherlands,6 Denmark and other Places to obtain Soumthing like the advant-ages7 of the three Divisions of Power that the time Seems to be peculiarly favourable. for discussions of this kind

I am, My dear Sir yours,

Your favour of the 24. May is before me. To presume defend the Seperation of the Legislative Executive and Judicial Powers, from each other, and the Division of the Legislature into three branches, 93 from the attacks of County Committees, riotous assemblies, and uninformed Philosophers and Statesmen, will be the Burthen of my Song and I am very glad to find that the Attempt, has met with your approbation. Such a distribution of Power appears to me, the Unum necessarium of Liberty Safety and good order, and therefore no Pains taken to preserve it, will be thrown away. An application has been made to me, here in behalf of a French Writer, who is very capable of translating, Such a Book, and who wishes to publish an Edition in French, in London. His Name is De la tour.1 I have discouraged his Project hitherto, because Mr Jefferson informed me that some one, had undertaken it in Paris. You inform me that Several have applied to Government, for Permission. But will they obtain it?— I am just returned from an Excursion to Amsterdam, where I was told by a Bookseller, that he was about getting it translated into Dutch.2 But I doubt whether any of these Undertakers will proceed: for American affairs, are not now so interresting in Europe as they were in the time of the War, and Such a Work will not sell now, as it would then.— I should be glad to know, with Certainty whether, your Bookseller has obtained Permission, and whether he will proceed, for the regulation of my own Conduct. Has he published his advertisement? I Should think he had better proceed with the first Volume, without waiting for the Second that he may form a better Judgment, whether it is worth his while to translate the Second at all.

If the Seperate States preserve inviolable, the Divisions and Seperations and Independence of these Several Authorities, their Liberties, their Security, their good order, Prosperity, Grandeur and Glory, will be the certain Consequence, whatever Imperfections may remain incurable in the Confederation. But if these Precautions are not taken We shall have a capricious and a turbulent, if not a bloody Scene in America for an hundred years to come. So it appears to m[e, an]d no Endeavours of mine shall be wanting, to secure th[e good] & prevent the Evil, however unpopular, I may make myself by the Attempt.

I am, Sir, with great regard, your / most obedient. &c