They were maintained by the
Spanish Consul, from whom applications for reimbursement, through
Mr. Carmichael, often came: no answer of any kind was ever given. A
certainty now, that our measures for their redemption will not succeed,
renders it unnecessary for us to be so reserved on the subject, and
to continue to wear the appearance of neglecting them. Though the
government might have agreed to ransom at the lowest price admitted with
any nation (as, for instance, that of the French order of Merci), they
will not give any thing like the price which has been lately declared to
be the lowest by the captors. It remains, then, for us to see what other
means are practicable for their recovery. In the mean time, it is our
desire that the disbursements hitherto made for their subsistence,
by the Spanish Consul or others, be paid off, and that their future
comfortable subsistence be provided for. As to past disbursements,
I must beg the favor of you to write to Mr. Carmichael, that you are
authorized to pay them off, pray him to let you know their amount,
and to whom payments are due. With respect to future provision for the
captives, I must put it into your hands. The impossibility of getting
letters to or from Mr. Carmichael, renders it improper for us to use
that channel.
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