TO E. PENDLETON.
Philadelphia, February 19, 1799.
Dear Sir,—Since my last, which was of the 14th, a Monsieur Leblane, agent from Desfourneaux, has come to town. He came in the Retaliation, and a letter of Desfourneaux, of which he was the bearer, now enclosed, will correct some circumstances in my statement relative to that vessel which were not very material. It shows, at the same time, that she was liberated without condition; still it is said (but I have no particular authority for it) that he has been obliged to receive French prisoners here, and to admit in the paper that the terms in exchange for prisoners taken from us, should be used, he declaring, at the same time, that they had never considered ours as prisoners, nor had an idea of exchange. The object of his mission was to assure the government against any future irregularities by privateers from Guadaloupe, and to open a friendly intercourse. He has been treated very cavalierly. I enclose you the President's message to the House of Representatives relative to the suspension of the Arret, on which our retaliation bill is founded.
A great event was presented yesterday. The President communicated a letter from Talleyrand to Pichon, French chargé des affaires at the Hague, approving of some overtures which had passed between him and Mr. Murray, and particularly of his having undertaken to assure Murray that whatever Plenipotentiary we might send to France to negotiate differences, should be received with the respect due to the representative of a free independent and powerful nation, and directing him to prevail on Murray to transmit these assurances to his government. In consequence of this, a nomination of Mr. Murray, minister Plenipotentiary to the French republic, was yesterday sent to the Senate. This renders their efforts for war desperate, and silences all further denials of the sincerity of the French government. I send you extracts from these proceedings for your more special information. I shall leave this the 2d day of March. Accept my affectionate salutations. Adieu.
P. S. I should have mentioned that a nomination is before the Senate of a consul general to St. Domingo. It is understood that he will present himself to Toussaint, and is, in fact, our minister to him.
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This is upon the margin of this letter.)
The face they will put on this business is, that they have frightened France into a respectful treatment. Whereas, in truth, France has been sensible that her measures to prevent the scandalous spectacle of war between the two republics, from the known impossibility of our injuring her, would not be imputed to her as a humiliation.