present, will give proofs that the State is not destitute of defenders of our dear country and of her liberty, and that the ancient heroic valor of the Batavians still exists, and will not be extinguished. Whereupon, noble, respectable, virtuous, our faithful and well beloved, we recommend you to the divine protection." "Your affectionate friend, WILLIAM, _Prince of Orange_. Thus, although the enemies of England in this Republic do not appear to have carried any particular point against the opposite party, yet it appears that they have forced into execution their system by means of the national voice, and against all the measures of the Anglomanes. The national spirit is now very high; so high that it will be dangerous to resist it. In time, all things must give way to it. This will make a fine diversion, at least for America and her allies. I hope in time we may derive other advantages from it. But we must wait with patience here, as we are still obliged to do in Spain, and as we were obliged to do in France, where we waited years before we succeeded. I have the honor to be, &c. JOHN ADAMS. * * * * * TO B. FRANKLIN. Amsterdam, August 25th, 1781. Sir, Last evening I received your Excellency's letter of the 16th of this month, accompanied with a letter from the President of Congress, containing the commissions you mention. You desire to know what steps have already been taken in this business. There has been no step taken by me in pursuance of my former commission, until my late journey to Paris, at the invitation of the Count de Vergennes, who communicated to me certain articles proposed by the mediating Courts, and desired me to make such observations upon them as should occur to me. Accordingly, I wrote a number of letters to his Excellency of the following dates; July 13th, enclosing an answer to the articles sixteen, eighteen, nineteen, twentyone. I would readily send you copies of the articles, and of those letters, but there are matters in them, which had better not be trusted to go so long a journey, especially as there is no necessity for it. The Count de Vergennes will readily give you copies of the articles and of my letters, which will prevent all risk. I am very apprehensive that our new commission will be as useless as my old one. Congress might very safely, I believe, permit us all to go home, if we had no other business, and stay there some years; at least, until every British soldier in the United States is killed or captivated. Till then, Britain will never think of peace, but for the purposes of chicanery.