Mr Jay will transmit Congress a full state of our affairs here, with all the papers necessary to elucidate it. I have seen but one letter from Congress since my residence in Spain, from which I conjecture Mr Jay has received but one. He informs me he has written Congress, that it has not been my fault, that all copies of letters for their inspection did not appear with my signature. In the month of May, I answered in writing the instructions he gave me at Cadiz, as I did _viva voce_ at Aranjues in April, before he entered Madrid. I should not mention this circumstance to the Committee, if I did not know that copies of these instructions had been forwarded to Congress, and only abstracts of the most important part of my answer sent them; I will take the liberty, therefore, of sending by the first safe opportunity the whole of my answer, from no other motive than that of evincing my desire to comply in every point with the duties of the trust reposed in me. I have the honor to be, &c. WILLIAM CARMICHAEL. _P. S. December 8th._--The Count d'Estaing sailed the 7th ult. from Cadiz, and, as yet, we have no news of his arrival in France. Mr Cumberland is still here, and waits an answer to despatches sent by the Abbe Hussey to England, which is daily expected. Mr Jay has received a letter from the Count de Vergennes, that France cannot provide for the payment of your bills here. But I always hope the credit of America must not be ruined for want of L100,000 sterling, although, personally, your servants have not money to pay their debts. W. C. FOOTNOTES: [8] See all the above papers in the Annual Register for 1780, pp. 356-380. * * * * * TO THE COMMITTEE OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS. Madrid, December 19th, 1780. Gentlemen, I wrote to the Committee the 20th ult. to which letter I beg leave to refer them. Having now an opportunity of writing by a vessel, which conveys a copy of my last, I seize it to inform them that the situation of our affairs here is much the same as at that period. Mr Jay has received near eighteen thousand dollars to pay the bills first accepted, and this, with the twentyfive thousand expected from France, will give us a respite until the month of March. In the interval, I hope the Court will enable Mr Jay to answer the others as they become due, though this will depend much on the facility it finds to procure money. I have reason to think that the Ministry expect some treasure from America, that they hope to negotiate in Holland a loan of forty millions of reals, and another at home and abroad for eight millions of dollars. I shall be glad to see these expectations realised.