[Extract]

I beg you in the second place, to ask M. de Sartine for his consent, at least tacit, to have cannon cast at the Ruelle forge in Angoumois, on the account of some owners of privateers; this forge, excellent for this purpose, is well situated, and was returned to the King's demesne last October; if it were still in the appanage of the Count d'Artois, I should have had every desirable and suitable facility for these operations, and notably to cast cannon there in the English fashion, under the direction of M. d'Antic, who knows this method better than anyone in Europe, and is in a position to still further improve it.