To Alexander Hamilton from George Washington, [22 April 1794]
From George Washington
[Philadelphia, April 22, 1794]
Sir,
Upon examining my letter to you of the 27. June ’93,1 and my two powers of the 8th of August 1793, the one for making a loan of one million of florins, and the other for making a loan of 1,515,98 dols. & 11 Cents, I wish to have some explanation upon the subject of your letter of yesterday’s date.2 The questions which arise are these: whether the million of Florins, to be borrowed for the instalment, payable to Holland in June next, be not already appropriated for that purpose;3 and whether the appropriation now proposed of the three millions of florins will not in some measure be contrary to the appropriation contained in my power of the 8th of August 1793. For it appears to me, that I have directed the money to be borrowed under that power, to be applied to the purchases of the public Debt.4
Geo: Washington
LC, George Washington Papers, Library of Congress.
1. Washington is presumably referring to his letter to H of July 27, 1793.
2. On April 22 Edmund Randolph had written to Washington: “E. Randolph requests the President to let him see the instructions, which he gave to Colo. Hamilton in the course of the last summer for borrowing more money. If E. R. is not greatly mistaken, there was some special appropriation made of it there” (AL, RG 59, Miscellaneous Letters, 1790–1799, National Archives).
See also H to Washington, April 21, 23, 25, 28, 1794; Washington to H, April 24, 27, 1794.
4. In the second of two letters which Washington wrote to H on August 8, 1793, the President authorized H to borrow the sum of $1,515,098.11 and stipulated that the loan “be applied to purchases of the public debt.”