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I arrived here only Saturday Night [April 20], where I found under Sailing Orders a Brig belonging to Philadelphia commanded by John Forrest. Her Burthen 180 Tons or upwards. She was chiefly loaded with Amunition & Fire Arms of all kinds. This I finq. to be the third has been here & sailed since Janry last ー Vizt a large Sloop about 80 a 90 Tuns, a Schooner, same burthen, & this Brig who sailed, with the Wind at N W last Muµday. ,

You may assure your friends at Londn that these V~ssels will conti1::111e to come here & to Bourdeaux during the Summer on account these Ports give into the Bay of Biscay, they suppose they do not run the risk to come to them they do them in the Channel, where they can hardly escape our Men of War. I heartily wished to be invested with a power from Government & a Man of Warr or two near me to receive my Instructions, these vessels would not get off I assure you ー I wrote Mr Corbet from Grandville about this matter & mentioned to him that as I am a Person in the Mercantile business I could go from One to the other of these Sea Ports unnoticed, & having some Ships stationed to receive my Instructions or Orders in the manner I mentioned to you, I could by that means detain & cause to be taken every one of these Americans after they should have sailed. This I am willing & will be happy to do provided the Government will make it worth my while, otherwise I assure you the bad Encouragement I recd in 1770 damps my proceeding any more on my own private Expence. There never was such a Comerce carried on in this country before as there is now ip the

Articles of Fire. Arms & Ammunition (i e) amongst the private Merchants for I am well assured that Governmt nor any under his command know not any thing about the matter ー I forgot to inform you that this last Brig Cap. Forrest has cleared out from this Place with part French Sailors on board & under French Colors pretending to be bound to St Domingo, so you see what a Scheme they have taken up for the Deception, and you may conceive that it requires a Person of some Penetration to enter into a certain knowledge of discovery of such Plans, & you may depend on it they'll make use of some such Machination to better convey their matters into a fair way of escaping suspicion.

I hope you'll judge it necessary & of use to Govt to convey this matter to the knowledge of your friends immediately, & I shall be glad to render any service in my Power to my King & Country.