In late February, 1793, Kendrick sailed the repaired "Washington" about east to Hong Kong Island. There, knowing that both Britain and Spain were seeking to lay claim to the Pacific Northwest and wanting to secure his own claims for the United States, Kendrick wrote to Thomas Jefferson. He described the land purchases he had made and included copies of the deeds. He wrote of his hope and belief that the United States would sanction and secure them, and protect them from Britain and Spain if necessary. He described the commercial advantages that could come from American possession of lands on the Northwest Coast, and suggested that a settlement there might be "worth the attention of some associated company, under the protection of the Government." The letter was received by the State Department on October 24, 1793. Jefferson was already trying to organize an overland expedition, under André Michaux, to the Pacific coast. The Michaux expedition never came to be, but the plan eventually resulted in the Lewis and Clark Expedition. Jefferson's reaction to Kendrick's letter is unknown, but the timing was not good. France had declared war on Britain and Spain just as Kendrick was writing the letter. Joseph Barrell had told Kendrick that any lands purchased could be authorized by Congress after the fact. Although this was true, in early 1793 Congress was unwilling to provoke Britain and Spain by annexing land on the Pacific coast.