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The Private Correspondence of Benjamin Franklin (2); Pt.iii. Letters Relating to Negotiations for Peace
The Private Correspondence of Benjamin Franklin Ptiii Letters Relating to Negotiations for Peace - 2 Author:Benjamin Franklin Volume: 2 General Books publication date: 2009 Original publication date: 1818 Original Publisher: Printed for H. Colburn Notes: This is a black and white OCR reprint of the original. It has no illustrations and there may be typos or missing text. When you buy the General Books edition of this book you get free trial access to Million-Books... more ».com where you can select from more than a million books for free. Excerpt: -. . i , .. . It., , , Fbom David Hartley, Esq. M. P. To JD. .. , My Dear Feieni,. London, May -I, 1792 ' I have received a packet from you containing several letters of various dates. As I shall probably have a safe opportunity of conveyance to you when Mr. Laurens leaves this country, I am now sitting down to. write to you an omnium kind of letter of various matters as they occur. The late ministry being departed, I may now speak of thing more freely. I will take a sentence in oae of your letters for my text. Vide yours of Apiil 13, 178£, in which you say : you was of opinion that the late ministry desired Sincerely a reconcUiatioH with America? and with that 6iew a separate, peace with us was proposed- I must qualify this sentence much, before I can adopt it as ray opinion. As to reconciliation, I never gave much qredk to- them fo that visb- It is a sweet expression. It certainty means More than peace The utmost I ever gae the kite ministry credit for, was a wish for peace. And I still believe that tiie wisest among them grew from day to day more disposed to peace or un abatement of ii:: war, in proportion as they became more alarmed for their own situations and their responsibility. Had the war been more successful, I should not have expected much relenting towards peace or reconciliation. That this has always beeu the measare of my pinion of them, I refer you to some words in a letter from me to you, dated January o, 1780, for proof -- " but for the point of sincerity ; why as to that I have uot much to say; I have at least expected some bol...« less