the 4th, written from
Marseilles. According to the desires of Congress, expressed in their
vote confirming the appointments of Francisco, Giuseppa and Girolamo
Chiappi, their agents in Morocco, I have written letters to these
gentlemen, to begin a correspondence with them. To the first, I have
inclosed the ratification of the treaty with the Emperor of Morocco,
and shall send it either by our agent at Marseilles, who is now here,
or by the Count Daranda, who sets out for Madrid in a few days, having
relinquished his embassy here. I shall proceed on the redemption of our
captives at Algiers, as soon as the commissioners of the treasury shall
enable me, by placing the money necessary, under my orders. The
prisoners redeemed by the religious order of Mathurins, cost about four
hundred dollars each, and the General of the order told me, that they
had never been able to redeem foreigners on so good terms as their own
countrymen. Supposing that their redemption, clothing, feeding and
transportation, should amount to five hundred dollars each, there must
be, at least, a sum of ten thousand dollars set apart for this purpose.
Till this is done, I shall take no other step than the preparatory one,
of destroying at Algiers all idea of our intending to redeem the
prisoners. This, the General of the Mathurins told me, was
indispensably necessary, and that it must not, on any account,
transpire, that the public would interest themselves for their
redemption. This was rendered the more necessary, by the declaration of
the Dey to the Spanish consul, that he should hold him responsible, at
the Spanish price, for our prisoners, even for such as should die.
Three of them have died of the plague. By authorizing me to redeem at
the prices _usually_ paid by the European nations, Congress, I suppose,
could not mean the Spanish price, which is not only unusual, but
unprecedented, and would make our vessels the first object with those
pirates. I shall pay no attention, therefore, to the Spanish price,
unless further instructed. Hard as it may seem, I should think it
necessary not to let it be known even to the relations of the captives,
that we mean to redeem them.

I have the honor to enclose you a paper from the admiralty of
Guadaloupe, sent to me as a matter of form, and to be lodged, I
suppose, with our marine records. I enclose, also, a copy of a letter
from the Count de Florida Blanca to Mr. Carmichael, by which you will
perceive, they