Believe me, my dear M. de Vidal, always your faithful and sincere friend,
J. H. MANDEVILLE.
To his Excellency Don Jose Antonino Vidal, &c. &c. &c.
(PRIVATE.)
Buenos Ayres, December 23rd, 1842.
My dear M. de Vidal,—I received this morning your private letter of the 20th,—after thanking you for it, I have little to add, except that Count de Lurde and I have received an answer to our note, demanding an armistice, stating that a demand of this nature, menacing as it does the Argentine Confederation, requires time for consideration before a reply can be given.
In the meantime, I trust that the step which I and the French Minister have taken will in no manner weaken, but, on the contrary, hasten and encourage the zealous efforts of your Government to resist invasion, because, where winds and waves are concerned, no man can say, when he leaves Europe, in what week or in what month he will arrive at Monte Video.
I know nothing of the operations of the armies on either side of the Uruguay; I thank you for the information which you send me about them—I know nothing from any other source.
Believe me ever, my dear M. de Vidal,