"GENERAL LAFAYETTE,
"To receive you at this naval station with the highest honors, is not less in obedience to our instructions, than to the impulse of our hearts.
"We rejoice in the opportunity of testifying to you, and to the world, our gratitude to one distinguished among that band of glorious heroes, to whom we are indebted for the privilege we now enjoy.
"You, sir, whose whole life has been devoted to the extension of civil liberty, must at this period be enriched by feelings which rarely fall to the lot of man.
"Turning from the old world, whose excesses have been almost fatal to the cause of liberty, to the new, where that cause has prospered to an unexampled degree, you see a proof, that political liberty is not visionary.
"The soldier will here behold the nation for which he has fought, not exhausted by his triumphs, nor sacrificed to idle ambition, but raised by his valor to liberty and independence; and while enjoying these blessings themselves, securing them for the remotest posterity.
"The patriot will here see a people, not distracted by faction, nor yet regardless of their political rights, making the most rapid strides to true greatness, and displaying in their happiness and security, the wisdom and power of institutions engraved on their hearts.
"To you, sir, the soldier and patriot, we offer this cheering picture; and if ever you can be recompensed for your generous devotion to us in our revolutionary struggle, it must be in the pleasure with which you witness our national happiness.
"Permit me then, dear General, to assure you that among the ten millions that bid you welcome, none do it with more sincerity than those of the navy."
Answer of General Lafayette.