My Dear Sir,

It was not ‘till the middle of February that I had the pleasure to receive your letter of the 23^d. of October. If you, who are at the fountain head of those great and important transactions which have lately engrossed the attention of Europe and America, cannot pretend to say what will be their event, surely we, in this distant quarter, should be presumptuous indeed in venturing to predict it. and unwise should we be in the extreme to involve ourselves in the contests of European Nations, where our weight could be but small; tho’ the loss to ourselves would be certain. I can however with truth aver that this Country is not guided by such narrow and mistaken policy as will lead it to wish the destruction of any nation, under an idea that our importance will be encreased in proportion as that of others is lessened. We should rejoice to see every nation enjoying all the advantages that nature and it’s circumstances would admit, consistent with civil liberty, and the rights of other nations. Upon this ground the prosperity of this Country would unfold itself every day, and every day would it be growing in political importance.