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A Century of Lawmaking for a New Nation: U.S. Congressional Documents and Debates, 1774-1875
Journals of the Continental Congress --SATURDAY, JUNE 5, 1779
A letter, of April 21, 1779, from John Allan, agent for Indian affairs, with sundry papers enclosed, was read:
Ordered, That it be referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs.
A letter of this day, from W. Palfrey, pay master general, was read;2 Whereupon,
[Note 2: 2 Allan's letter is in thePapers of the Continental Congress, No. 78, I, folio 225; that of Palfrey is in No. 165, folio 502.]
Resolved, That the report of the Committee on the Treasury of March 17th, 1779, be re-considered.
The said report being read, Congress came to the following resolution:
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Whereas, by a receipt of William Palfrey, pay master general, dated the 1st July, 1777, and other evidence, it appears that Elias Boudinot supplied him with 2000 dollars in bills of credit intended to have been placed in the continental funds; that in consequence of a refusal of Joseph Borden, Esq. commissioner of the continental loan office in New Jersey, to issue certificates in part of a warrant drawn on him by the President of Congress in favour of William Palfrey, Esq. the matter has been suspended:
Resolved, That a warrant issue on the said Joseph Borden, Esq. in favour of the said Elias Boudinot, for 2000 dollars, in loan office certificates, bearing date the 1st July, 1777, in full for a like sum delivered by him to William Palfrey, Esq. pay master general, who is to be accountable.
Congress proceeded to consider another report from the Committee on the Treasury; Whereupon,
Resolved, That the consideration of the allowance to be made to William Palfrey, Esq. paymaster general of the army, for his past and future services, be postponed.1
[Note 1: 1 This report, endorsed June 2, is in thePapers of the Continental Congress, No. 136, III, folio 357.]
Ordered, That a warrant issue on the treasurer, in favour of the said William Palfrey, for three thousand dollars, he to be accountable.
A letter, of this day, from John Morgan was read;2 Whereupon,
[Note 2: 2 This letter is in thePapers of the Continental Congress, No. 63, folio 125.]
Resolved, That Saturday next be assigned for considering the report of the committee on the memorial of Doctor J. Morgan.
A letter from Augustin Loizeau was read, inclosing sundry certificates:
Ordered, That the same be referred to the Board of War.
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A letter, of May 24, 1779, from Captain Stoddard, was read,1 requesting that Congress would please to order that a bill or draught should be drawn on the commissioner, or other proper person in France, to enable him to receive his wages during his furlough, which he has obtained for the recovery of his health.
[Note 1: 1 This letter is in thePapers of the Continental Congress, No. 78, XX, folio 415.]
On the question to agree to his request,
Passed in the negative.
According to the order of the day, Congress proceeded to the consideration of the report of the committee on the memorial of Mr. de Francey, which is as follows:
"The committee to whom Mr. de Francey's memorial was committed, report,
"That in obedience to the direction of Congress, they have conferred with Mr. de Francey:
"That he has delivered to the committee divers invoices of cargoes shipped in France by Mr. de Beaumarchais, viz. cargo by theAmphitrite, and interest to 31 March, 1779, 782,827 livres;Seine, 687,515;Mercure, 700,594;Amelie, 230,174;Therese, 985,317;Mere Bobie, 66,750;Marie Catharine, 148,075;Flamand, 545,416.--Also, a general account of disbursements by Mons. Carabasse, at Cape François, for purchasing Bermudian boats to take the cargoes of theAmelie andTherese, 115,000; demurrage paid Mr. Monthieu, on theTherese,Flamand, andAmphitrite, agreeable to contract with Mr. Beaumarchais, 141,400, and of sums advanced to Silas Deane, esq. and paid by his order, together with interest, 144,525, making 4,547,593 livres: equal to 198,957 [pounds] sterling, or thereabouts; on which no commission is yet charged, nor premium of insurance, if insurance was made. The articles of commission and insurance, as well as Mr. Beaumarchais's account in general, is committed for adjustment to the commissioners of these states at the court of Versailles.
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"In abatement of the abovementioned sum, Mr. de Francey admits about 300,000 livres, or 13,125£. sterling, and 115½ hogsheads of tobacco, exported in theFier Roderique, the net proceeds of which remain unsettled. Mr. Francey also supposes there are further charges to be brought to the debit of the general account, and intimates that there may be some few errors in the invoices, but requests that the Commercial Committee may be directed to enter on their books the amount of the invoices as they now stand, remarking that errors may be hereafter redressed. Mr. Francey, in a letter to the committee, of the 24 May, 1779, writes--
Mr. de Beaumarchais's claims against Congress amount to about £200,000 sterling, not including the commission and other charges. As these are to be determined between the American commissioners and Mr. Beaumarchais, in France, it is not in my power to fix at this moment the exact amount of the debt, but I am very certain it will exceed £200,000: in order to discharge a part of it directly, I would propose to have bills drawn by Congress upon the plenipotentiary minister of the United States at Paris, to the order of Mr. Beaumarchais, payable at the end of three years, bearing an interest of six per cent. annually for the amount of one hundred thousand pounds sterling, in 50 bills of £2000 each. In the mean while I should wish that produce of this country should be purchased to load without delay some vessels which I expect daily, and by which I will receive all the papers that may be necessary to settle finally this transaction.
"From the several accounts abovementioned, all which the committee beg leave to lay before Congress, it appears that Mr. Beaumarchais has a just claim on these states for a large sum of money, but it is not in their power, with any degree of exactness, to ascertain the amount.
"They beg leave to recommend to Congress,
"1. To give the necessary directions for discovering what articles of merchandise, warlike stores, and other articles, have been received in these states from Mr. Beaumarchais, and Mr. Carabasse, and in what manner the Bermudian boats,
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said to have been purchased by Mr. Carabasse, have been disposed of:
"Also that Congress will be pleased to direct the Committee for Foreign Affairs to write immediately to the commissioners at the Court of France, and desire them to transmit an account of their proceedings in Mr. Beaumarchais's accounts, pursuant to the order of Congress of the 13th day of April, 1778:
"That in the meanwhile the Committee on the Treasury be directed to prepare proper bills of exchange on the minister plenipotentiary at the court of France, payable to Mr. Beaumarchais's order at the end of three years from the date, with interest to be paid annually at six per cent; the bills to be for different sums, from one thousand to four thousand pounds sterling, or the value thereof in livres, and six bills to each set, and to amount in the whole to one hundred thousand louis d'or or 2,400,000 livres of France:
"That the Committee of Commerce be directed to deliver to Mr. de Francey all the merchantable tobacco belonging to these states, and now in store in Virginia, Maryland, and North Carolina, and to consign the shipChase and her cargo of tobacco to Mr. de Beaumarchais."
On the question to agree to these several recommendations and directions, reported by the committee, resolved in the affirmative.
The committee having farther reported,
That the said Committee of Commerce be also directed immediately to purchase two thousand hogsheads of tobacco, and order it to be laid up in warehouses in order to be ready for the ships expected by Mr. de Francey.
On the question to agree to this, the yeas and nays being required by Mr. [Nathaniel] Scudder,
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So it passed in the negative.
A letter of this day from the Board of War, was read:
Ordered, That it be referred to the Committee of Commerce, and that they be directed to take order thereon immediately.
Another letter of this day, from the Board of War, was read; Whereupon,
Resolved, That one more blank commission be sent to the commissioners of Indian affairs in the northern department, to be filled up with the name of such faithful chief as they shall deem worthy of that honor.1
[Note 1: 1 This letter is in thePapers of the Continental Congress, No. 147, III, folio 391.]
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A letter, of 3d, from General Washington, enclosing an extract of a letter from Major General Gates of May 25th, and sundry other papers, was read: Whereupon,
Ordered, That the extract from Major General Gates be referred to the Board of Treasury.
Another letter, of the 3d, from General Washington, was read, enclosing extracts from the proceedings of a board of general officers on the claim of Major Prowell, of the Pensylvania line, and sundry papers relative to Colonel Dubois's claim of rank; Whereupon,1
[Note 1: 1 These letters of Washington are in thePapers of the Continental Congress; the first is in No. 152, VII, folio 885. It is printed inWritings of Washington (Ford), VII, 463. The second letter is in No. 152, VII, folio 397.]
Resolved, That Colonel Dubois rank in the line of the army of the United States of America, after Colonel Van Cortlandt and Colonel Gansevoort.
Resolved, That the commission of major, granted to Captain Prowell in the 11th Pensylvania regiment, be vacated, and that the rank of the officers continue the same as they were at the time of passing the resolution for incorporating Patron's and Hartley's regiments and the independent companies, and rise according to the principle or rule established in the army.2
[Note 2: 2 In thePapers of the Continental Congress, No. 147, III, folio 381, is a letter from the Board of War enclosing an extract of a letter of Major General Knox, on the taking of Verplank's Point, endorsed as read this day.]
Adjourned to 10 oClock on Monday.
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