his "Basht dree o'glock," the further information, "und Gorn-val lis ist da-ken." Wild scenes of rejoicing greeted the coming day, and Congress repaired to the Lutheran Church to thank God for the deliverance. When the news reached Paris the victory was celebrated with a brilliant illumination of the city. Even in England many of the anti-war party rejoiced; but Lord North, on hearing the news, paced the floor of his room, threw his arms wildly about, and repeated again and again, "O) God, it is all over, it is all over."

It was not until April 19, 1783, exactly eight years after Lexington, that Washington proclaimed the war at an end, and discharged the army. Some time later he took impressive leave of his officers and retired to his Mt. Vernon home, a private citizen.

The very important business of concluding a treaty of peace was now in progress. The treaty was arranged in Paris, and the American commissioners were Benjamin Franklin, John Jay, and John Adams. Franklin was already in Paris, Jay was at Madrid, and Adams was in Holland trying to place a loan. American independence was a foregone conclusion, and every country in Europe was pleased with this outcome, except Spain, which foresaw that the United States as an independent power would become a menace to her American possessions. The North ministry had fallen, and the Marquis of Rockingham was now premier, with Shelburne and Charles James Fox as members of his Cabinet. All of these had been the friends of America from the beginning. In July, 1782, Rockingham died, and Shelburne, succeeding him as premier, became the one who, through his agents, treated with the Americans. Our commissioners had been instructed not to deal separately with England without the consent of France, and by these instructions Franklin was ready to abide. But Jay discovered, or thought he discovered, that the French minister, Vergennes, had proposed secretly to England that the United States be deprived of all the region between the Alleghany Mountains and the Mississippi River in the interests of Spain, and also that American fishermen be prohibited from Canadian waters, and he offered to treat with England secretly without the consent of France.

The treaty

of peace.

The proposition was gladly accepted by Shelburne. Franklin did not approve of Jay's course, but Adams, arriving from Holland about this time, sided with Jay, and Franklin yielded. They therefore arranged with Shelburne a

1 Fiske, Vol. II, p. 285.

OBSERVATIONS ON THE WAR

313

preliminary treaty, which was signed November 30, 1782, while the definitive treaty was not signed until the 3d of September, 1783, the long delay being caused by the European situation.

By the treaty the independence of the United States was acknowledged, and the boundaries were Florida on the south, the Mississippi on the west, and the southern boundary of Canada on the north. The northern boundary could not be absolutely fixed, owing to imperfect geographical knowledge. This was done sixty years later, and a child born among the New Hampshire hills the same year that marked the signing of the preliminary treaty became the American agent in completing this work that was left unfinished.

Webster.

The Mississippi was left open to both American and British shipping; the right of the Americans to fish on the coast of Newfoundland and in the Gulf of St. Lawrence was continued, while British subjects were not granted fishing rights on the Provisions of coasts of the United States. The other two questions the treaty. to be disposed of were those relating to the loyalists

and to the payment of private debts to British subjects, contracted by Americans before the war. Of these the former is the subject of a note at the end of this chapter; the latter was decided in the only right way to decide such a question—every debt must be paid to its full extent in sterling money.

The treaty on the whole was a great diplomatic victory for the United States. As Mr. Lecky says, nothing that we could reasonably have expected was denied us. Aside from independence, the one abiding triumph of incalculable importance was the securing the Mississippi, instead of the Alleghanies, as the western boundary of the United States. Of scarcely greater importance was the purchase of Louisiana, twenty years later, than was this first step toward the expansion of the new republic to the western ocean.

OBSERVATIONS

To the "Revolution," by which the war as well as the change of government is often designated, I have given considerable space because of its great importance in the world's history. It gave birth to the greatest of modern nations. It also ended a long and bloodless strife in England between two political parties, or opposing principles of government, and resulted in the restoration of Parlia

mentary rule as distinguished from that of the royal prerogative. During the war the belief was widespread that the success of the Americans would bring ruin to the British Empire and relegate it to a second place among the powers, but such a result did not follow. England, now in the hands of Parliament and not of the king, rose like a wounded giant and smote her enemies right and left. Admiral Rodney, the greatest of English seamen except Nelson and Blake,1 in a tremendous naval battle in the West Indies in 1782, destroyed the French fleet and made a prisoner of De Grasse; and before the end of the year the English won a great victory over the Spaniards at Gibraltar. England now became the mother of nations and rose to a greater height than ever before, reaching the acme of her power a generation later at Waterloo.

America was not greatly weakened by the Revolution. It is true that the fishing industry and the shipping business were temporarily destroyed, but in spite of this fact the country continued to prosper during the war, and gained three hundred thousand inhabitants.2 In fact, the war did not continue long in any one place. The wealth of the country lay chiefly in its farm products, and so extensive was the territory that the invading armies overran less than one tenth of it during the whole war. When a foreign army was quartered for a long season in any place, it was a benefit rather than a detriment to the community, as the farmers received better prices, and usually in specie, for their products. In short, the country was richer and stronger in resources at the end of the war than at its beginning. Nevertheless, the patriot armies were often barefoot, but half clothed, and actually suffering for food. This arose wholly from a want of government. The country was laden with harvests and fruits, with shoes and clothing; but Congress was powerless, it could not supply the army, it had no power of taxation. In one way alone, the worst way of all, could Congress tax the people by issuing paper money; and this it did lavishly. This Continental money depreciated in the hands of the people until it became valueless. A pound of sugar sold for $10, and a barrel of flour for $1500. To say that a thing was "not worth a continental" was to express the utmost contempt for its value. This inflation of the currency

1 Greene.

2 Rhode Island and Georgia alone lost in population. See Channing's "United States of America," p. 105.

3 The various issues by Congress (all before the close of 1779) aggregated $242,000,000. Lossing's Cyclopedia," Vol. II, p. 321.