I have the honor to be, with much respect, Sir, your most obedient humble servant, RICHARD OSWALD. _P. S._ Major Ross has got no copy of Lord Cornwallis's parole. He says it was in the common form, as in like cases. Since writing the above, I recollect I was under a mistake, as if the proposal of exchange came first from Mr Laurens; whereas, it was made by his Majesty's Secretaries of State to me, that Mr Laurens should endeavor to procure the exchange of Lord Cornwallis, so as to be discharged himself. Which proposal I carried to Mr Laurens, and had from him the obligation abovementioned, upon which the mode of his discharge was settled. R. O. * * * * * TO RICHARD OSWALD. Passy, June 5th, 1782. Sir, I received the letter you did me the honor of writing to me, respecting the parole of Lord Cornwallis. You are acquainted with what I wrote some time since to Mr Laurens. Tomorrow is post day from Holland, when possibly I may receive an answer, with a paper drawn up by him for the purpose of discharging that parole, to be signed by us jointly. I suppose the staying at Paris another day will not be very inconvenient to Major Ross, and if I do not hear tomorrow from Mr Laurens, I will immediately, in compliance with your request, do what I can towards the liberation of Lord Cornwallis. I have the honor to be, with great respect, Sir, your most obedient humble servant, B. FRANKLIN. * * * * * JOHN ADAMS TO B. FRANKLIN. The Hague, June 13th, 1782. Sir, I had yesterday, at Amsterdam, the honor of receiving your Excellency's letter of June the 2d. The discovery, that Mr Grenville's power was only to treat with France, does not surprise me at all. The British Ministry are too divided among themselves, and have too formidable an opposition against them, in the King and the old Ministers, and are possessed of too little of the confidence of the nation, to have courage to make concessions of any sort, especially since the news of their successes in the East and West Indies. What their vanity will end in God only knows; for my own part, I cannot see a probability, that they will ever make peace, until their finances are ruined, and such distresses brought upon them, as will work up their parties into a civil war. I wish their enemies could by any means be persuaded to carry on the war against them in places, where they might be sure of triumphs, instead of insisting on pursuing it where they are sure of defeat. But we must take patience, and wait for time to do what wisdom might easily and soon do.