to get through the business; and I have just received from him a letter, and the Arret duly authenticated; of which I have the honor to send you a number of printed copies.  You will find, that the several alterations and additions are made, which, on my visit, to the seaports, I had found to be necessary, and which my letters of June the 21st and August the 6th particularly mentioned to you.  Besides these, we have obtained some new articles of value, for which openings arose in the course of the negotiation.  I say we have done it, because the Marquis de la Fayette has gone hand in hand with me through this business, and has been a most invaluable aid.  I take the liberty of making some observations on the articles of the Arret, severally, for their explanation, as well as for the information of Congress.

Article 1.  In the course of our conferences with the Comptroller General, we had prevailed on him to pass this article with a suppression of all duty.  When he reported the Arret, however, to the Council, this suppression was objected to, and it was insisted to re-establish the duties of seven livres and ten sous, and of ten sous the livre, reserved in the letter of M. de Calonne.  The passage of the Arret was stopped, and the difficulty communicated to me.  I urged every thing I could, in letters and in conferences, to convince them that whale-oil was an article which could bear no duty at all.  That if the duty fell on the consumer, he would choose to buy vegetable oils; if on the fisherman, he could no longer live by his calling, remaining in his own country; and that if he quitted his own country, the circumstances of vicinity, sameness of language, laws, religion, and manners, and perhaps the ties of kindred, would draw him to Nova Scotia, in spite of every encouragement which could be given at Dunkirk; and that thus those fishermen would be shifted out of a scale friendly to France, into one always hostile.  Nothing, however, could prevail.  It hung on this article alone, for two months, during which we risked the total loss of the Arret on the stability in office of Monsieur Lambert; for if he had gone out, his successor might be less favorable; and if Monsieur Necker were the successor, we might lose the whole, as he never set any store by us, or the connection with us.  About ten days ago, it became universally believed that Monsieur Lambert was to go out immediately.  I therefore declined further insisting on the total suppression, and desired the Arret might pass, leaving the duties on whale-oil, as Monsieur de Calonne had promised them; but with a reservation, which may countenance our bringing on this matter again, at a more favorable moment.

Article 2.  The other fish-oils are placed in a separate article; because, whatever encouragements we may hereafter obtain for whale-oils, they will not be extended to those which their own fisheries produce.

Article 3.  A company had silently, and by unfair means, obtained a monopoly for the making and selling spermaceti candles:  as soon as we discovered it, we solicited its suppression, which is effected by this clause.