Letter from Thomas Jefferson to [William] Carmichael and [William] Short, 24 April 1792

Jefferson writes to Carmichael and Short, who as commissioners to Spain are negotiating free navigation of the Mississippi River and other matters that led to the Treaty of San Lorenzo in October 1795. Jefferson extends negotiations to include "fugitive debtors & criminals" and other matters of common concern for "territories bordering on us."

Jefferson's instructions were originally drafted by a Congressional committee in 1782 to be used by U.S. ministers for negotiating a peace or to the minister at the Court of Versailles in briefing the King of France on current peace negotiations, particularly "the exterior boundary" of the U.S. It includes the basis for the boundaries established for all 13 orig. states.

Filson Historical Society Manuscript Collection

Mss. C J [Presidents ' Papers]