War department August 10^th 1798 Sir, The President of the United States has instructed me to request your Excellency that in case any of the privateers specified in my letter of this day should bring or send any prizes into any harbour or port of the State of Connecticut that you will please to cause such prizes to be restored to the persons who were Masters or Owners at the time of their being captured. If no such persons should be found and there should be a Consul residing in Connecticut of the power to which the prize belonged at the time of its capture, then it is to be delivered to him or to his Order — I have the honor to be with great respect Your Excellency's obedient Servant [signature] Jno. g[undecipherable: plear?] his Excellency the Governor of Connecticut