Mr. Grand conceives that he has suffered in your opinion, by an application of two hundred thousand livres, during the last year, differently from what the office of finance had instructed him.  This was a consequence of his being thought subject to direction here, and it is but justice to relieve him from blame on that account, and to show that it ought to fall, if any where, on Dr. Franklin, Mr. Adams, and myself.  The case was thus.  The monies here were exhausted, Mr. Grand was in advance about fifty thousand livres, and the diplomatic establishments in France, Spain, and Holland, subsisting on his bounties, which they were subject to see stopped every moment, and feared a protest on every bill.  Other current expenses, too, were depending on advances from him, and though these were small in their amount, they sometimes involved great consequences.  In this situation, he received four hundred thousand livres, to be paid to this government for one year’s interest.  We thought the honor of the United States would suffer less by suspending half the payment to this government, replacing Mr. Grand’s advances, and providing a fund for current expenses.  We advised him so to do.  I still think it was for the best, and I believe my colleagues have continued to see the matter in the same point of view.  We may have been biassed by feelings excited by our own distressing situation.  But certainly, as to Mr. Grand, no blame belongs to him.  We explained this matter in a letter to Congress, at the time, and justice requires this explanation to you, as I conjecture that the former one has not come to your knowledge.

The two hundred thousand livres retained, as before mentioned, have been applied to the purposes described, to the payment of a year’s interest to the French officers (which is about forty-two thousand livres), and other current expenses, which, doubtless, Mr. Grand has explained to you.  About a week ago, there remained in his hands but about twelve thousand livres.  In this situation, the demands of the French officers for a second year’s interest were presented.  But Mr. Grand observed there were neither money nor orders for them.  The payment of these gentlemen, the last year, had the happiest effect imaginable; it procured so many advocates for the credit and honor of the United States, who were heard, in all companies.  It corrected the idea that we were unwilling to pay our debts.  I fear that our present failure towards them will give new birth to new imputations, and a relapse of credit.  Under this fear I have written to Mr. Adams, to know whether he can have this money supplied from the funds in Holland; though I have little hope from that quarter, because he had before informed me, that those funds would be exhausted by the spring of the present year, and I doubt, too, whether he would venture to order these payments, without authority from you.  I have thought it my duty to state these matters to you.