Lieutenant Simpson has stated to us your having put him under arrest for disobeying orders. As a court martial must, by order of Congress, consist of three captains, three lieutenants, and three captains of marines, and these cannot be had here, it is our desire that he may have a passage procured for him by the first opportunity to America, allowing him whatever may be necessary for his defence. As the consequences of an arrest in foreign countries are thus extremely troublesome, they should be well considered before they are made. If you are in possession of any resolution of Congress, giving the whole of ships of war when made prizes to the captors, we should be obliged to you for a copy of it. We should also be obliged to you for a particular account in whose hands the prizes made by you are, and in what forwardness is the sale of them. We have the honor to be, &c. B. FRANKLIN, ARTHUR LEE, JOHN ADAMS. * * * * * THE COMMISSIONERS TO JOHN PAUL JONES. Passy, June 3d, 1778. Sir, We have received sundry letters from Lieutenant Simpson, and sundry certificates from officers and others, concerning his behavior in general, and particularly upon that occasion in which he is charged with disobedience of orders. Without giving or forming any decided opinion concerning his guilt or innocence of the crime laid to his charge, we may venture to say, that the certificates we have received are very favorable to his character, and at least afford reason to hope, that he did not mean to disobey his orders. Be this however as it may, we are constrained to say, that his confinement on board of any other ship than the Ranger, and much more his confinement in a prison on shore, appears to us to carry in it a degree of severity, which cannot be justified by reason or law. We therefore desire you would release Mr Simpson from his imprisonment, and permit him to go at large upon his parole to go to Nantes, there to take his passage to America by the first favorable opportunity, in order to take his trial by a court martial. We request you to transmit to us as soon as possible, an account of what is due to Lieutenant Simpson, according to the ship's books, for wages.