He tells me, that Mr. Adams told him, that when he came on in the fall to Trenton, he was there surrounded constantly by the opponents of the late mission to France. That Hamilton pressing him to delay it, said, "Why, sir, by Christmas, Louis the XVIII. will be seated on his throne." Mr. A. "By whom?" H. "By the coalition." Mr. A. "Ah! then farewell to the independence of Europe. If a coalition moved by the finger of England, is to give a government to France, there is an end to the independence of every country." * * * * * January the 12th. General Samuel Smith says that Pickering, Wolcott, and McHenry, wrote a joint letter from Trenton to the President, then at Braintree, dissuading him from the mission to France. Stoddard refused to join in it. Stoddard says the instructions are such, that if the Directory have any disposition to reconciliation, a treaty will be made. He observed to him, also, that Ellsworth looks beyond this mission to the Presidential chair. That with this view, he will endeavor to make a treaty, and a good one. That Davie has the same vanity and views. All this communicated by Stoddard to S. Smith. * * * * * January the 13th. Baer and Harrison G. Otis told J. Nicholas, that in the caucus mentioned ante 10th, there wanted but five votes to produce a declaration of war. Baer was against it. * * * * * January the 19th. W. C. Nicholas tells me, that in a conversation with Dexter three or four days ago, he asked Dexter whether it would not be practicable for the States to agree on some uniform mode of choosing electors of President. Dexter said, "I suppose you would prefer an election by districts." "Yes," said Nicholas, "I think it would be best; but would nevertheless agree to any other consistent with the constitution." Dexter said he did not know what might be the opinion of his State, but his own was, that no mode of _election_ would answer any good purpose; that he should prefer one _for life_. "On that reasoning," said Nicholas, "you should prefer an hereditary one." "No," he said, "we are not ripe for that yet. I suppose," added he, "this doctrine is not very popular with you." "No," said Nicholas, "it would effectually damn any man in my State." "So it would in mine," said Dexter; "but I am under no inducement to belie my sentiment, I have nothing to ask from anybody; I had rather be at home than here, therefore I speak my sentiments freely." Mr. Nicholas, a little before or after this, made the same proposition of a uniform election to Ross, who replied that he saw no good in any kind of election. "Perhaps," said he, "the present one may last awhile." On the whole, Mr. Nicholas thinks he perceives in that party, a willingness and a wish to let everything go from bad to worse, to amend nothing, in hopes it may bring on confusion, and open a door to the kind of government they wish. In a conversation with Gunn,