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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 --MONDAY, JULY 15, 1782
Mr. [Joseph] Montgomery and Mr. [Jesse] Root, the two members sent to the states eastward of Pensylvania, being returned, took their seats.
The committee, consisting of Mr. [Arthur] Lee, Mr. [David] Ramsay and Mr. [John] Lowell, to whom was referred a motion of Mr. [Arthur] Lee for examining appointed to examine Captain Barry, touching the loss of the ship La Fayette, having reported the result of their examination:
The Committee to whom was referred the resolution for examining Capt Barr), Commander of the Frigate Alliance, touching the loss of the Ship la Fayette; beg leave to report as follows,
That having called Capt Barry before them, he gave the Committee the following information:
That on his arrival at L'Orient in France about the 7th March, 1781, having orders to take in any public stores, or convoy any Ship containing such stores for the United States, he enquired of Mr Moylan the Agent there, whether there were any public goods for him to
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carry, and was answered that there were not, for that a ship was chartered by Mr Williams for that purpose. Col°. Laurens and himself examined some bales of the clothing, and thought the cloth good, but they did not unpack any of them, so as to judge of the size of the uniforms. He advised the Captain of the la Fayette to go immediately to Brest, and sail with the convoy then going from that port. But instead of doing this, he lent his seamen to other ships, and remained in port. He thinks the Captain shewed constantly a reluctance in preparing to sail, and when he got him under his convoy, which was towards the last of March, 1781, he appeared very unwilling to make sail. After having been about three weeks at sea, in a gale of wind, and during a squall which split the foresail and fore top sail of the Alliance, so that she could not put before the wind, the la Fayette disappeared. When the squall commenced she was within hailing distance of the Alliance.
Capt. Robinson of South Carolina, now in L'Orient, who was then on board the la Fayette, has informed Capt. Barry by letter, that in the thickest of the squall, the Captain of the la Fayette put his ship before the wind and sailed away, tho' he, Capt. Robinson, remonstrated with him, that the Alliance could not steer that course, and that he must inevitably lose his convoy. This was directly contrary to his proper course.
Capt: Barry says he gave the Captain of the la Fayette signals both of colours and guns, but he went off without making any signal so that the' he cruised for him two days, he could not fall in with him. The la Fayette was an Indiaman exceedingly old, but sailed very well. She carried 26 18 pds. on one deck and 12 or 14, 6 pdds. on her forecastle and quarter deck, with about 200 men.
Mr. Williams informed Capt. Barry that he chartered this Ship of Mr. de Chaumont, at Dr. Franklin's table, for 10 guineas per ton measurement. That there was no charter party, but a verbal agreement that she should be ready by Oct°., 1780. The freight for about eleven hundred tons measurement, was paid by Mr. Williams in Bills on Dr. Franklin, before the Captain signed the Bills of Loading, which were to land the cargo in any part of America. From a calculation made by Captain Barry with Mr. Williams, the public stores shipped in the la Fayette amounted to about 450 tons. He was informed by Mr. Williams and Mr. Moylan that what was shipped on the public account was--100 tons of salt petre, 26 iron 18 pounders, 15,000 old gun barrels, some sole and harness leather, uniforms for 10,000 men,
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and cloth for 5 or 6,000. Yet the Ship appeared to be very deeply laden.
Upon this your Committee agreed to report the following resolution,
Ordered, That the secretary transmit a copy of the report to Captain Barry, to be compared with the log-book of the Alliance, corrected if there should be any mistakes, and signed and sworn to by him, and returned to Congress together with Captain Robinson's letter referred to in his information.1
[Note 1: 1 This report, in the writing of Arthur Lee, is in the Papers of the Continental Congress, No. 19, I, folio 225.]
An act passed by the legislature of Maryland was laid before Congress and read, entitled, "An act to authorise the United States in Congress assembled, to impose and levy a duty of five per centum on imported foreign goods, and on all prizes and prize goods, for the payment of the debt contracted by Congress during the war."2
[Note 2: 2 The letter, dated July 12, from the Governor of Maryland. transmitting the act, is in the Papers of the Continental Congress, No. 70, folio 509.]
War Office, July 15, 1782.
Sir,
On the letter from Major General Parsons to Congress requesting leave of absence from the army until called for, referred to me, I beg leave to submit the following resolve,
Resolved, That Major General Parsons be permitted to retire from service with the emoluments granted to officers retiring as super-numeraries.3
[Note 3: 3 This report is in the Papers of the Continental Congress, No. 149, I, folio 505. It was referred on this day, the indorsement states, to Mr. [Ezekiel] Cornell, Mr. [Abraham] Clark, Mr. [Joseph] Montgomery.
On this day, according to the indorsement, was referred to the same committee a letter of the 15, from the Secretary at War, enclosing a letter from General Washington and copy of one from Brigadier General Glover. It is on folio 509.
Also, a letter from General Washington, dated Head Quarters July 9, enclosing correspondence with the British Commander in Chief, relative to the exchange of American seamen for British soldiers, was read and referred to Mr. [John] Witherspoon, Mr. [James] Madison and Mr. [John] Rutledge. It is in No. 152, X, folio 595, It is printed in the Writings of Washington (Ford) X, 41.]
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