243 ANNUAL REGISTER, 1794. 



circumstances of personal severity, 

 by which those proceedings are 

 stated to have been accompanied in 

 some particular instances. 



The undersigned is authorized to 

 assure Mr. Jay, that itis his msj:-ity*s 

 wish, that the most complete and 

 impartial justice should be done to 

 all the citizens of America, who may 

 in facthavebeen injured byanv of the 

 proceedings above-mentioned. All 

 experience shews, that a naval war, 

 extending over the four quarters of 

 the globe, must unavoidably be pro- 

 ductive of sorne inconveniences to 

 the commerce of neutral nations; 

 and that no care can prevent some 

 irregularities in the course of those 

 proceedings, which are universally 

 recognized as resultinsr from the just 

 rights incident to all B^Uigcrent 

 powers. But the king will always 

 be desirous that these inconveni- 

 encies and irregularities should be 

 as much limited as the nature of the 

 case will admit, and that the fullest 

 opportunity should be given to all 

 to prefer their complaints, aiid to 

 obtain ndress and compensation 

 where they are due. 



In Mr. Jay's note, mention is 

 made of several cases wh«rc tlie 

 parties have hitherto omitted to pre- 

 fer their claims, ar;dot others, where 

 no appeals have been made from the 

 sentences of condemnation' pro- 

 nounced ill t'lie first instance. 



As to the cases of the first descrip- 

 tion, lord Grenville apprehends that 

 the regular-course of law is still open 

 to the claimants ; and that by pre- 

 ferring appeals to tlie commissioners 

 of prize-causes here, against the sen- 

 tence of the courts beloW, the whole 

 ~ merits of those case; may be brought 

 forward, and the most coniplete 

 justice obtained. 



In thecases of second description, 

 the proceedings might be dif'-Cii't, 

 from thj lapse of the time us' '. ly 

 allottedforprefei ring appeals. — Bat 

 his majesty being anxious that no 

 temporary or local circumstances, 

 such as those to which Mr. Jay re- 

 fers in his note, should impede the 

 courseof substantial justice, has been 

 pleased to refer it to the proper of- 

 ficers to consid'-r of a mode of en- 

 larging the time for receiving the 

 appeals, in those cases, in order to 

 admit the claimants to bring their 

 complaints before the regular court 

 appointed for that purpose. 



The undersigned has no doubt 

 that in this manner a very consider- 

 able part of the injuries alleged to 

 have been suffered by the Americans, 

 may, if the complaints are well 

 founded, be redressed in the usual 

 course of judicial proceeding, at a 

 very small expcnce to the partic-, 

 and without any other interposition 

 of his majesty's government than is 

 above stated ; until the result and 

 . effect of the; e proceedings shall be 

 known, no definitive judgement can 

 be formed respecting the nature and 

 ex tent of those cases ( if any such sliall 

 ultimately be found to exist,) where 

 it shall not have been practicable to 

 obtain substantial redress in this 

 mode. — But he docs not hesitate to 

 say beforehand, that if cases shall 

 then be found to exist, to such an 

 extent as properly to call for the 

 interposition of government, where, 

 v\'ii:hout thcfault of the parties com- 

 plaining, they shall be unable, from 

 whatever circumstances, to procure 

 such redress in the ordinary course 

 of law, as the justice of their cases 

 may intitle them to expect, his ma- 

 jesty will be anxious that justice 

 should at all events be done, and 



will 



