To the inhabitants of the United States of America.

FRIENDS AND COUNTRYMEN,

THE present situation of public affairs de

mands your most serious attention, and particularly the great and increasing depreciation of your currency requires the immediate, strenuous and united efforts of all true friends to their country, for preventing an extension of the mischiefs that have already flowed from that source.

AMERICA, without arms, ammunition, discipline, revenue, government or ally, almost totally stript of commerce, and in the weakness of youth, as it were with a "staff and a sling" only, dared "in the name of the Lord of Hosts" to engage a 'gigantic adversary, prepared at all points, boasting

of his strength, and of whom even mighty warriors "were greatly afraid."

FOR defraying the expences of this uncommon war, your representatives in congress were obliged to emit paper money; an expedient that you knew to have been before generally and successfully practised on this continent.

THEY were very sensible of the inconveniences with which too frequent emissions would be attended, and endeavoured to avoid them. For this purpose they established loan-offices so early as in October, 1776, and have from that time to this repeatedly and earnestly solicited you to lend them money on the faith of the United States. The sums received on loan have nevertheless proved inadequate to the public exigencies. Our enemies prosecuting the war by sea and land with implacable fury, and with some success, taxation at home and borrowing abroad, in the midst of difficulties and dangers, were alike impracticable. Hence the continued necessity of new emissions.

BUT to this cause alone we do not impute the evil before mentioned. We have too much reason to believe it has been in part owing to the artifices of men who have hastened to enrich themselves by. monopolizing the necessaries of life, and to the

misconduct of inferior officers employed in the public service.

THE variety and importance of the business intrusted to your delegates, and their constant attendance in congress, necessarily disables them from investigating disorders of this kind. Justly apprehensive of them, they by their several resolutions of the 22d of November and 20th of December, 1777, and of the 3d and 9th of February, 1778, recommended to the legislative and executive powers of these states, a due attention to these interesting affairs.How far those recommendations have been complied with we will not undertake to determine but we hold ourselves bound in duty to you to declare, that we are not convinced there has been as much diligence used in detecting and reforming abuses, as there has been in committing or complaining of them.

WITH regard to monopolizers, it is our opinion, that taxes judiciously laid on such articles as become the objects of engrossers, and those frequently collected, would operate against the pernicious tendency of such practices.

As to inferior officers employed in the public service, we ANXIOUSLY desire to call your most vigilant attention to their conduct, with respect to

every species of misbehaviour, whether proceeding from ignorance, negligence or fraud, and to the making of laws for inflicting exemplary punishments on all offenders of this kind.

We are sorry to hear that some persons are so slightly informed of their own interests, as to suppose that it is advantageous to them to sell the produce of their farms at enormous prices, when a little reflection might convince them that it is injurious to those interests and the general welfare. If they expect thereby to purchase imported goods cheaper, they will be egregiously disappointed; for the merchants who know they cannot obtain returns in gold, silver, or bills of exchange, but that their vessels, if loaded here at all, must be loaded with produce, will raise the price of what they have to sell, in proportion to the price of what they have to buy; and consequently the land-holder can purchase no more foreign goods for the same quantity of his produce, than he could before.

THE evil however does not stop at this point. The landholder by acting on this mistaken calcula-, tion, is only labouring to accumulate an immense debt, by increasing the public expences, for the payment of which his estate is engaged, and to embarrass every measure adopted for vindicating his liberty, and securing his prosperity.

As the harvests of this year, which by the Di vine Goodness promise to be plentiful, will soon be gathered, and some new measures relating to your foreign concerns, with some arrangements relating to your domestic, are now under consideration, from which beneficial effects are expected, we entertain hopes that your affairs will acquire a much greater degree of regularity and energy, than they have hitherto had.

BUT we should be highly criminal, if we did not plainly tell you that those hopes are not founded wholly upon our own proceedings. These must be supported by your virtue, your wisdom and your diligence. From the advantage of those seats in the national council with which you have honoured us, we have a pleasing prospect of many blessings approaching this our native land. It is your patriotism must introduce and fix them here.

In vain will it be for your delegates to form plans of economy, to strive to stop a continuation of emissions by taxation or loan, if you do not zealously co-operate, with them in promoting their designs, and use your utmost industry to prevent the waste of money in the expenditure, which your